Saints Coach Phil Dowson: ‘Banking Was a Difficult Experience’
This English town is hardly the most glamorous destination globally, but its squad provides an abundance of romance and adventure.
In a town renowned for boot‑making, you could anticipate punting to be the Saints’ primary strategy. But under leader Phil Dowson, the squad in their distinctive colors choose to retain possession.
Even though playing for a distinctly UK location, they showcase a panache associated with the best Gallic practitioners of attacking rugby.
After Dowson and the head coach Sam Vesty assumed control in 2022, Northampton have secured the English top flight and advanced far in the continental tournament – losing to a French side in the previous campaign's decider and eliminated by Leinster in a semi-final previously.
They sit atop the competition ladder after four wins and a draw and head to Bristol on Saturday as the just one without a loss, seeking a initial success at Ashton Gate since 2021.
It would be natural to think Dowson, who participated in 262 premier games for multiple clubs combined, consistently aimed to be a coach.
“When I played, I didn't really think about it,” he remarks. “Yet as you mature, you understand how much you enjoy the game, and what the normal employment is like. I spent some time at Metro Bank doing a trial period. You travel to work a few times, and it was difficult – you grasp what you possess and lack.”
Conversations with club legends led to a role at the Saints. Fast-forward a decade and Dowson guides a squad increasingly crammed with national team players: prominent figures started for England versus the New Zealand two weeks ago.
The young flanker also had a profound impact from the replacements in England’s perfect autumn while the fly-half, in time, will assume the No 10 jersey.
Is the rise of this remarkable group due to the club's environment, or is it luck?
“It's a bit of both,” states Dowson. “My thanks go to Chris Boyd, who basically just threw them in, and we had difficult periods. But the experience they had as a group is certainly one of the factors they are so close-knit and so talented.”
Dowson also namechecks his predecessor, another predecessor at Franklin’s Gardens, as a significant mentor. “I’ve been fortunate to be coached by really interesting people,” he notes. “Mallinder had a big impact on my professional journey, my training methods, how I manage others.”
The team play entertaining rugby, which proved literally true in the case of Anthony Belleau. The Frenchman was part of the French club overcome in the continental tournament in the spring when the winger scored a triple. Belleau admired the style to such an extent to reverse the trend of UK players heading across the Channel.
“A friend rang me and stated: ‘We know of a Gallic number ten who’s in search of a club,’” Dowson explains. “My response was: ‘We lack the money for a imported playmaker. Thomas Ramos will have to wait.’
‘He wants experience, for the possibility to prove his worth,’ my mate informed me. That interested me. We met with Belleau and his English was incredible, he was articulate, he had a funny side.
“We asked: ‘What do you want from this?’ He answered to be coached, to be driven, to be outside his comfort zone and beyond the French league. I was like: ‘Join us, you’re a great person.’ And he turned out to be. We’re fortunate to have him.”
Dowson comments the 20-year-old the flanker provides a specific enthusiasm. Has he encountered anyone comparable? “Never,” Dowson replies. “All players are unique but he is unusual and remarkable in numerous aspects. He’s not afraid to be authentic.”
The player's sensational score against Leinster in the past campaign showcased his unusual skill, but various his animated on-field actions have led to claims of arrogance.
“He sometimes seems arrogant in his conduct, but he’s far from it,” Dowson asserts. “And he's not taking the piss constantly. Game-wise he has input – he’s no fool. I think at times it’s depicted that he’s only a character. But he’s clever and a positive influence in the squad.”
Few coaches would describe themselves as having a bromance with a colleague, but that is how Dowson characterizes his connection with his co-coach.
“Together have an curiosity around various topics,” he says. “We maintain a book club. He aims to discover everything, aims to learn everything, wants to experience different things, and I think I’m the similar.
“We converse on numerous topics away from the game: movies, reading, ideas, culture. When we met the Parisian club in the past season, the landmark was undergoing restoration, so we had a little wander around.”
One more fixture in France is looming: The Saints' reacquaintance with the domestic league will be brief because the Champions Cup kicks in next week. Their next opponents, in the vicinity of the mountain range, are the opening fixture on Sunday week before the Bulls travel to the following weekend.
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