Inside the strike move Northampton have mastered – and how Saracens will aim to stop it

Among the many different battles that decide Friday night’s Premiership semi-final between Northampton Saints and Saracens will be an ultimate test of that well-worn sporting phrase: “You know exactly what is coming, but can you stop it?”

Saints steeled themselves last summer with specialised conditioning and collective weight gain across the squad, but have stayed true to their traditional identity. They remain an intrepid attacking force, yet one of their most potent weapons is a strike move used by sides all around the world.

“It’s the same move everyone is doing,” Sam Vesty concedes. “There are no magic moves – at all. We’re good at it because we practice it a lot. The players can take it a little bit closer to the line and make their decisions a little bit later.

“My mindset on that is that everyone knows, pretty much, what everyone else is going to be doing. But if you do it well, if you control a certain defender and isolate another one, it’s very hard to defend.”

The not-so-secret ploy in question is described by Vesty as “two guys hard at the line and a guy out the back”. “Leaguies [rugby league players] have been doing it forever,” says the Northampton head coach. “Rugby union has been doing it badly for ages.”

Most prominent from line-outs, the shape usually sees one centre stand at first receiver with their midfield partner hitting a short, out-to-in angle. Behind that, the fly-half will sweep around with their blindside wing for company, aiming to connect with their full-back and the openside wing to overload the opposition. This explanatory graphic is over two years old, which in itself underlines how ubiquitous the move – labelled below as ‘the slide’ – has become:

During the 2023-24 Premiership season, 39 of the 76 tries scored by Saints have originated from line-outs. Saracens (40), Bristol Bears and Harlequins (both 42) all have more from this platform, and kick-return is another fruitful area for Northampton (producing 13 tries), but Vesty’s strike moves – and some subtle variation on ‘the slide’ – have been eye-catching.

This is how Saracens attempting to quell Saints’ line-out attack, a pivotal subplot, could play out.

First of all, respect the maul

Other teams maul more than Northampton, who after 18 rounds were seventh in the Premiership for both maul metres (153m) and maul tries (four). Still, they do pose enough of a threat to keep defences honest. This drive allowed Robbie Smith to dot down for a crucial score against Leicester Tigers a month ago:

James Craig, the Saints line-out coach, is highly valued and Phil Dowson has tended to supplement two starting locks with Courtney Lawes at blindside flanker and a six-two split of forwards on the bench, thanks to the versatility of George Furbank. Only Bristol (93.9 per cent) bettered Northampton’s 90.1 per cent success rate on their own throw this term.

Saracens, however, will aim to stop them at source. They are joint top of the rankings for line-out steals, tied with Leicester on 24, with Juan Martin Gonzalez (seven) alongside Ollie Chessum as the most prolific individual player. Nick Isiekwe, another springy jumper has been named to start at lock and Maro Itoje’s maul defence could prove influential as well.

Watch for wings on break-out plays

Before we come to ‘the slide’, there is a set play with which Saints challenge the defence in a different way. As they establish a maul, they will break away from the drive, with their hooker arcing towards the openside. A centre hits a short line with the blindside wing running a tight circle in behind.

It worked beautifully here for Ollie Sleightholme to steam over against Harlequins last November. Saints call a ‘six plus one’ line-out comprising six forwards and another, Lewis Ludlam, in the receiver slot. This is a signpost for a maul, but note that Fraser Dingwall pushes up, beyond fly-half Furbank, when Tom Pearson collects the throw. A dummy drive sucks in all of the Harlequins forwards except for Will Evans and a first-phase try results:

This map reinforces Vesty’s point about how accurate running lines will fix certain defenders and isolate others. Sam Matavesi’s arc holds Evans as Dingwall holds Cadan Murley (11), giving the explosive Sleightholme a one-on-one against Marcus Smith (10):

Sleightholme, powerful and tenacious with nimble feet and fearful acceleration, is a perfect wing to send up in these situations. This try against Bristol, from the exact same move on the other flank, brought a quite remarkable finish:

Saracens will need tackles to stick in this channel. Owen Farrell’s presence at fly-half clearly makes them a sturdy unit.

‘The slide’ with extra wrinkles

What makes ‘the slide’ so effective is that several options can be taken from the same set-up, with subtle tweaks completely changing the picture. These nuances usually concern the depth and the width adopted by the fly-half and the blindside wing behind their centres and in relation to all backs involved in the play. Take this set-up from a left-hand line-out, where the respective positioning of the fly-half (10) and the blindside wing (11) alters what the defence must cover:

Saints, with a balanced back-line full of ball-players, have become masters in deception when it comes to ‘the slide’. Watch this try, also from the November win over Harlequins:

Tommy Freeman lingers on the inside shoulder of Furbank, holding the defence narrow. George Hendy, meanwhile, shapes in-field before arcing away:

All of that allows Saints to outflank Oscar Beard, defending on the left wing for Harlequins, and go over on the outside:

In December against Toulon in the Champions Cup, Tom Seabrook crosses the whitewash untouched as Northampton employ ‘the slide’ in a different way to find the same space on the edge:

Fin Smith’s connection with Hendy, who slips to the outside of his fly-half on this occasion, is critical and Leicester Fainga’anuku is the key defender. He speeds past the Saints centres in a bid to ruffle Smith:

Smith sees this coming, treads water on the pull-back from Tom Litchfield and flicks the ball onto Hendy to beat the blitzing Fainga’anuku. Watch that interplay in slow motion:

Another element of surprise that Saints have demonstrated is running ‘the slide’ from deep inside their own half. Munster might have expected a clearance kick here. Instead, Northampton instigate a sweeping version of ‘the slide’.

Smith can isolate Antoine Frisch, Munster’s outside centre, and send a trailing Sleighthome into the gap to Simon Zebo’s right. Hendy follows up to score:

Saracens will have to cover the flat runner. Dingwall stays square and times passes nicely. Here, he throws a flat one, rather than a pull-back to Smith, to send Litchfield over the try-line against Harlequins at Twickenham:

Further wide, it is a question of commitment and collective understanding for the defence. If wings steam through towards Smith, then their full-back may have to follow suit to stop Saints’ blindside wing as well. If they hold off, then inside defenders must work hard to untangle themselves from decoy runners and reconnect. As ever, this is all a game of cat and mouse.

Multi-phase traps and different ploys

Vesty’s playbook has more than one page, which means Saints do not have to rely on ‘the slide’. Sometimes, the first few phases of an attack will be mapped out. Against Glasgow Warriors back in December, Northampton needed to improvise off the back of a messy line-out:

In the Champions Cup quarter-final against the Bulls, James Ramm capitalises on a shrewd, two-phase plan:

Rewinding to the initial line-out, we can see that Juarno Augustus and Sam Graham, two back-rowers, are stationed in midfield beyond Smith with Sleightholme lingering close by and Dingwall deeper:

Graham carries on the first phase with Augustus in support to resource the ruck. That allows the whole Northampton back-line to remain on their feet for the next phase. Dingwall slips into first-receiver with Freeman hitting a hard line and Smith and Sleightholme swinging in behind. Saints effectively run a second-phase version of ‘the slide’, with Smith firing a pass across Sleightholme to Ramm:

Interestingly, these ‘set up plays’ – where a relatively simple carry foreshadows something more intricate – are understood to have been identified by Jacques Nienaber as areas of weakness where Leinster could impart breakdown pressure. Watch out for disruptive Saracens defenders like Ben Earl bidding to upset Northampton’s rhythm.

Saints may well unveil a lesser-spotted play for the occasion. To instigate the 90-0 thrashing of Gloucester earlier this month, Northampton scythed through with a double slice pattern. Dingwall fed Smith behind Angus Scott-Young before Augustus pulled the ball behind Freeman to Hendy:

Vesty insists there are no magic moves. But the synergy of Saints, which Saracens must stifle, does occasionally make you wonder.