Hendy Scores Three as Eight-Try Saints Demolish Pretoria Bulls

The young winger scored a hat-trick as the Saints secured a perfect ten points from their opening two Investec Champions Cup games with an eight-try thrashing of the Bulls.

Sleightholme crossed twice and Henry Pollock scored the bonus point try inside an hour as a dominant Northampton side cut loose in the second half.

The Bulls were still in the game with the score fourteen-five at the interval but a yellow card to prop Tshakweni in the 53rd minute for a needless trip proved decisive and they failed to register a point in the final forty minutes.

England fly-half Smith added 10 points with the boot as Northampton moved to the summit of Pool Four on points difference from defending champions Bordeaux with both sides on 10 points.

The nature of this win, coming after a 35-27 away win at Section Paloise previously, means last season's runners-up Saints could not have hoped for a more ideal beginning as they look to go one better in this campaign.

Pretoria's number ten Wolhuter missed an early penalty before the hosts opened the scoring when Pollock broke before feeding Sleightholme who showed his pace to sprint away to the line.

But an error from Sleightholme let the Bulls back in as the ball slipped from his grasp in the tackle, allowing Bulls wing Stravino Jacobs to kick on and show blistering pace of his own to score after 22 minutes.

Shortly after, Northampton had their second try as quick hands from Alex Mitchell at the ruck base and then Smith put Hendy over in the corner to make it 14-5 at the break.

Saints were dominant in both ball and field position and were being given a helping hand from Bulls fly-half Wolhuter who twice missed touch with penalty kicks to reinvite pressure onto the visitors.

That proved decisive after 48 minutes when Fin Smith was again the architect, stepping inside to deceive the advancing defence before delivering a perfectly weighted grubber kick over the line for George Hendy to collect his second try and Saints' third score.

Bulls prop Alulutho Tshakweni was then sin-binned for a tripping offense on Iyogun. Tshakweni was insistent he had been responding to a trip momentarily before by Iyogun but the incident from the Saints replacement prop was ruled unintentional when looked at by the officials.

Saints capitalized of having the numerical advantage to secure the bonus point through Pollock before Coles and Ollie Sleightholme crossed as the home team registered three scores in five frantic minutes.

George Hendy completed his triple with twelve minutes left on the clock and Kemeny strolled in for the eighth and final try of an outstanding day for Saints in the dying moments.

Rerun of Last Year's Final Next for Saints

The leading pair in the pool meet in a rematch of last year's final when the Investec Champions Cup returns in the new year as Saints travel to Bordeaux. Northampton then round off the pool stage with a fixture at home against Scarlets on 18 January.

The Bulls, who have one point from their opening two games, host Bristol Bears in their next outing before an away trip face Pau.

Line-ups

Northampton: Furbank; Sleightholme, Hutchinson, Dingwall, Hendy; F Smith, Mitchell; Fischetti, Wright, Davison, Coles, Van der Mescht, Kemeny, Pearson, Pollock

Replacements: R Smith, Iyogun, Kundiona, Munga, Prowse, Graham, James, Thame

Bulls: Williams; Petersen, Gans, Vorster, Jacobs; Wolhuter, Burger; Tshakweni, Van der Merwe, Smith, Wiese, Van Heerden, Coetzee, Ludwig, Louw

Replacements: Else, Sithole, Mchunu, Gumede, Carr, Papier, Johannes, Van Niekerk

Yellow card: Tshakweni (53)

Match Officials

Referee: Hollie Davidson (Sco)

Assistant referees: Rob McDowell (Sco) and Dave Sutherland (Sco)

TMO: Mike Adamson (Sco)