Late tries by Bruce Reihana and Paul Diggin put Northampton out of sight in a largely entertaining joust and dealt a potentially mortal blow to Gloucester's chances of qualifying for the end-of-season play-offs. The Saints, who shaded the try count by four to three, deserved to win, though the eventual margin of victory was perhaps a mite flattering.

Gloucester outscored the home side by three tries to two in the first half, but it was the Saints who led 23-19 at the interval, thanks to three well-struck penalty goals by Stephen Myler and a double dose of bad luck for Ryan Lamb, who struck a post with his first two kicks at goal. "Right-hand post, left-hand post – only the crossbar left, Ryan," said the stadium announcer, rather ungraciously.

Lamb was as mercurial as ever. It was his beautiful long miss-pass that created the try of the first half for Mark Foster, yet the Cherry and Whites' No10 began the match with a horrible knock-on and missed a sitter of a penalty goal early in the second period, after which he was summarily and popularly replaced by the Northampton old boy Carlos Spencer.

Myler and Olly Barkley traded penalties shortly afterwards in a second half that failed to live up to the rich pickings of the first until Reihana and Diggin denied Gloucester even a losing bonus point.