The result at Kingston Park last night, where Newcastle secured a losing bonus point in their defeat by Bath, means effectively that Leeds have to win at Franklins Gardens on Saturday afternoon to even have a chance of continuing their brief flirtation with top flight English rugby.
There are, however, a couple of factors which could help the Tykes' cause. The Saints are in the Heineken Cup semi-final today. This must surely be their primary objective for the season - winning Europe's biggest prize. The other one is that they are playing Perpignan, a rough-tough Catalan team who will certainly kick seven bells out of the Northampton players if it aids their cause. So we could see the Saints squad with injury issues and one eye on the big prize when we meet next weekend. Will this make a difference? Probably not. Saints have a relatively big squad with strength in depth.
Can Leeds win? Unlikely but not impossible. One last throw of the dice.
Or Bedford beat Worcs.
ReplyDelete