What would have been a meaningless mid-table encounter was given a modicum of spice by the fact that the loser would almost certainly face a trek to Leicester in the play-off quarter-finals while the winner would have an outside chance of qualifying for the Heineken Cup.
The lack of purpose shown by both sides in the opening quarter indicated that they fancied bearding the Tigers in their own den. Bristol managed to squander a one-man advantage early on - when the Northampton prop, Robbie Morris, was sent to the sin-bin for foul play - spurning the chance of two five-yard scrums from penalties for line-outs which they wasted.
Bristol had picked a back division brimming with pace, with the wing David Rees chosen in the centre, but a lacklustre match only started to smoulder when the Saints' flanker Andrew Blowers, surged through some weak tackling for a soft try.
Bristol were roused into an immediate reply when Rees forced his way over after more half-hearted tackling and the scrum half Agustin Pichot increased the home side's advantage with another silver-plated try after the Northampton back row had allowed their outside half, Paul Grayson, to deal with the rampaging No 8 Ben Sturnham.
Grayson, who had passed 1,500 league points with his first penalty, traded penalties with Felipe Contepomi just before the break, and Bristol led 21-13 at the interval.
Northampton played for the first eight minutes of the second half without Blowers, who had been sent to the sin-bin at the end of the first period for a professional foul. Grayson kicked two penalties in his absence with the visitors playing a mauling game which stifled Bristol as Contepomi kicked his fourth penalty of the evening .
Bristol: Best; Daniel (Higgins, 53), Rees, Little (capt), Christophers; Contepomi, Pichot; Crompton, McCarthy, White, Archer, Brown, Sheridan, Lipman, Sturnham.
Northampton: Shaw; Brooks, Jorgensen, Tucker, Beal (Cohen, 44); Grayson, Malone (Dawson, 53); Morris, Richmond, Stewart, Phillips, Brouzet, Blowers, Pountney (capt), Soden.
Sin-bin: Morris 4min; Blowers 40; Contepomi 55.
Referee: C Lander (Cheltenham)
