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This English town is hardly the most exotic location on the planet, but its rugby union team delivers a great deal of thrills and drama.

In a city renowned for boot‑making, you might expect kicking to be the Saints’ primary strategy. But under the director of rugby Phil Dowson, the side in their distinctive colors prefer to run with the ball.

Although playing for a distinctly UK location, they exhibit a style synonymous with the finest French masters of attacking rugby.

After Dowson and his colleague Sam Vesty stepped up in 2022, Northampton have won the English top flight and gone deep in the European competition – beaten by Bordeaux-Bègles in the previous campaign's decider and knocked out by Leinster in a semi-final earlier.

They sit atop the competition ladder after a series of victories and one tie and head to Bristol on the weekend as the only unbeaten side, aiming for a first win at their opponent's ground since 2021.

It would be natural to think Dowson, who participated in 262 premier matches for Newcastle, Northampton and Worcester altogether, always planned to be a trainer.

“When I played, I never seriously considered it,” he states. “Yet as you get older, you realise how much you love the sport, and what the real world is like. I had a stint at Metro Bank doing an internship. You make the journey a several occasions, and it was difficult – you grasp what you possess and lack.”

Discussions with former mentors led to a role at Northampton. Jump ahead several seasons and Dowson guides a roster ever more filled with global stars: prominent figures lined up for the national side against the All Blacks two weeks ago.

Henry Pollock also had a major effect from the replacements in England’s flawless campaign while the fly-half, eventually, will assume the pivotal position.

Is the development of this exceptional group because of the club's environment, or is it fortune?

“It is a bit of both,” says Dowson. “I’d credit the former director of rugby, who thrust them into action, and we had some tough days. But the practice they had as a group is undoubtedly one of the factors they are so tight and so talented.”

Dowson also mentions Jim Mallinder, a former boss at the club's home, as a significant mentor. “It was my good fortune to be mentored by highly engaging personalities,” he says. “He had a major effect on my career, my management style, how I interact with people.”

The team demonstrate entertaining the game, which was clearly evident in the instance of their new signing. The Frenchman was a member of the Clermont XV beaten in the European competition in last season when Freeman registered a triple. Belleau was impressed to such an extent to buck the pattern of English talent moving to France.

“A mate phoned me and said: ‘We know of a fly-half from France who’s seeking a club,’” Dowson explains. “I said: ‘There's no funds for a French fly-half. Another target will have to wait.’

‘He’s looking for new challenges, for the chance to test himself,’ my friend informed me. That caught my attention. We met with Anthony and his language skills was excellent, he was eloquent, he had a sense of humour.

“We asked: ‘What do you want from this?’ He answered to be guided, to be pushed, to be outside his comfort zone and away from the Top 14. I was thinking: ‘Come on in, you’re a great person.’ And he has been. We’re blessed to have him.”

Dowson says the emerging Pollock brings a specific energy. Has he encountered anyone comparable? “No,” Dowson answers. “All players are original but Pollock is distinct and special in numerous aspects. He’s unafraid to be who he is.”

Pollock’s breathtaking try against the Irish side last season illustrated his exceptional skill, but various his expressive in-game actions have led to accusations of overconfidence.

“At times comes across as cocky in his actions, but he’s not,” Dowson asserts. “Plus Pollock is not joking around the whole time. Tactically he has input – he’s a smart player. I believe sometimes it’s portrayed that he’s merely a joker. But he’s clever and good fun in the squad.”

Few directors of rugby would describe themselves as having a bromance with a colleague, but that is how Dowson describes his connection with Vesty.

“Together possess an inquisitiveness regarding diverse subjects,” he notes. “We maintain a book club. He aims to discover various elements, wants to know each detail, aims to encounter varied activities, and I feel like I’m the similar.

“We converse on lots of things away from rugby: movies, reading, concepts, art. When we faced our French rivals in the past season, Notre-Dame was being done up, so we had a little wander around.”

A further date in France is approaching: The Saints' comeback with the Prem will be brief because the continental event intervenes next week. The French side, in the foothills of the Pyrenees, are the initial challenge on matchday before the Pretoria-based club visit soon after.

“I refuse to be presumptuous enough to {