Skipper Wood salutes Saints' resilience

Wood scored the winning try as Jim Mallinder’s men claimed a 28-21 Champions Cup victory against Castres at Franklin’s Gardens on Saturday.

It was a fourth successive win for Saints, who will look to make it five in a row at Montpellier on Friday night.

And Wood has been impressed with how his team have closed games out, with the success against Castres the third time in as many weeks that Saints have held their nerve late on.

“I thought we were really good in the first half and could have had a few more points,” the captain said. “We showed great resolve again to finish strongly.

“We were disappointed when we went to Castres and we were disappointed home and away against Leinster so that was a big incentive - to do something a bit positive in this competition especially in front of our home fans.

“The pressure was off in terms of league points and qualification - it was just about playing positively.

“Hopefully there is a lot more to come from us. We feel like we are starting to build nicely and gather a bit of momentum.

“It’s about how we finish the season. The top four is in our sights and we have to put all our efforts into the league.”

Wood has been one of Saints’ stand-out players this season.

And in recent weeks, the club’s back row has really impressed, with Teimana Harrison another man pressing for an England place in the Six Nations, which starts next month.

“For me and Teimana it is about working well as a partnership,” Wood said.

“We are trying to play like international players back at our club sides, that is our incentive, to hopefully make it hard for the selectors.”