Quins inability to turn possession into points was best illustrated with the Saints third try of the afternoon, scored four minutes after the break, after Quins had looked set to score from a rolling maul that had taken them deep into the Northampton twenty-two.

Alas the ball was spilled, and within seconds Northampton spread possession across to the left where former All Black Bruce Reihana was able to hack the ball goalwards and eventually Nick Beal touched down by the posts to give Quins a mountain to climb at 28-7 behind, after Paul Grayson had added the conversion.

Grayson had put the home side in front at the start of the afternoon after barely a minute with a penalty, but Quins hit back with some controlled rugby to claim the lead when Tony Diprose was driven over from a lineout close to the Saints line.

With Paul Burke adding the extras to put the visitors 7-3 up things were shaping up well for that elusive first victory of the season on the road. However, two further penalties from Grayson put the home side back in front.



Reihana then grabbed his first try for the club from wide on the left after Quins had lost their only lineout inside their twenty-two. The home side then worked the ball across the pitch to the wing, where Reihana wasted little time in diving in at the corner.

Grayson missed the difficult conversion to keep Quins in the hunt, but the visitors could not conjure up enough passages of play without turning over possession, and four minutes from the break the Saints tactics of kicking the ball into the corners had Quins scrambling back and 21 year-old prop Brett Sturgess somehow squeezed over in the same left hand corner as Reihana, for his first try for the Saints. Grayson's successful conversion stretched the home team's lead to 21-7 at the interval.

Quins continued to turn over possession whilst struggling to make any effective tackles, and with the home side boosted by their early score after the break, Quins did well not to concede any further scores. That was until four minutes from time when Beal scrambled over from close range following a series of scrums close to the visitors line for a try that Grayson converted.

Nathan Williams did go close for the visitors, but yet another turnover, this time by Andre Vos, emphasised that this was not going to be Quins day and when Vos went off with an injured shoulder into stoppage time, the visitors miserable day was just about complete.