Saints set to take huge support to Sandy Park for European quarter-final

Saints have enjoyed impressive travelling support in Europe this season

The black, green and gold have already sold more than 1,000 tickets of their 3,000 allocation for the match, which takes place on Saturday, April 4 (kick-off 3.15pm).

And with ticket sales continuing, the number of Saints supporters set to travel to the west country looks likely to be sizeable.

Chris Boyd's team reached the last eight after finishing as one of three best runners-up during the pool stages.

They beat both Benetton and Lyon twice to ensure they would finish second behind Leinster in Pool 1.

Exeter made it through as second seeds, only behind Leinster when it came to the best record in the pool stages.

But Saints will hope to spring a surprise when the two Gallagher Premiership teams, who currently sit first and second in the domestic table, square up in April.

“To us, it didn’t matter (who Saints played in the quarter-finals),” Saints co-captain Alex Waller said.

“The only difference is a flight, whether it’s Toulouse or Leinster or Exeter.

“It doesn’t really matter to us because we’re just going to have to go out there and perform.

“There’s a reason why those teams are at the top of the pile - because they’re great teams.

“We’re going to have to be at our best at Exeter, but we’re looking forward to testing ourselves in Europe and getting back into knockout rugby again.”

It will be Saints’ first venture into the last eight of Europe’s top tier competition since 2016, when they lost to Saracens at Allianz Park.

And Waller added: “By no stretch has it been an easy couple of years.

“I’ve been fortunate enough to go through the highs of 2013, 14, 15 and then I’ve been involved in some of the lows after that.

“Now we’re back on the up, which is fantastic and really good to see.

“It’s the rugby we want to be playing. We want to be playing in the biggest leagues against the best teams and test ourselves on the best stage.

“It’s fantastic and I’m really proud of the boys for having achieved it.”

To purchase tickets for Saints' quarter-final at Exeter, head to www.northamptonsaints.co.uk/buytickets