Northampton scored eleven tries in a Premiership victory over Bath, with Ollie Sleightholme completing a hat-trick and Tommy Freeman adding two. The teams produced eighteen tries and 119 points between them.
Bath scored seven times but still finished comfortably behind. Fin Smith and Finn Russell displayed a wide range of attacking skills, while the match raised equally striking questions about the amount of space available to runners.
The Guardian’s report treats the spectacle as both entertaining and difficult to judge against the demands of tighter knockout rugby. The attacking achievement is clear, but a game with sixty-nine defenders beaten also gives coaches substantial defensive material to examine beyond the final score.
