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This English town is hardly the most glamorous location in the world, but its squad delivers plenty of thrills and drama.

In a town known for shoe production, you would think kicking to be the Northampton's primary strategy. Yet under the director of rugby Phil Dowson, the team in green, black and gold choose to run with the ball.

Despite representing a quintessentially English town, they display a panache synonymous with the best Gallic exponents of attacking rugby.

Since Dowson and his colleague Sam Vesty stepped up in 2022, Northampton have won the English top flight and progressed well in the Champions Cup – defeated by Bordeaux-Bègles in the previous campaign's decider and eliminated by Dublin-based club in a penultimate round earlier.

They currently top the competition ladder after a series of victories and one tie and visit Bristol on Saturday as the sole undefeated team, seeking a first win at Bristol's home since 2021.

It would be expected to think Dowson, who featured in 262 top-flight matches for various teams altogether, always planned to be a coach.

“When I played, I never seriously considered it,” he says. “However as you mature, you realise how much you enjoy the game, and what the real world entails. I spent some time at a banking firm doing work experience. You make the journey a multiple instances, and it was challenging – you see what you do and don’t have.”

Conversations with Dusty Hare and Jim Mallinder led to a job at Northampton. Fast-forward eight years and Dowson guides a team increasingly filled with global stars: Tommy Freeman, Fraser Dingwall, Alex Mitchell and Alex Coles lined up for England against the the Kiwis two weeks ago.

The young flanker also had a major effect from the replacements in England’s perfect autumn while the fly-half, down the line, will assume the fly-half role.

Is the rise of this remarkable generation because of the team's ethos, or is it fortune?

“It is a bit of both,” comments Dowson. “My thanks go to the former director of rugby, who gave them opportunities, and we had difficult periods. But the exposure they had as a unit is definitely one of the factors they are so close-knit and so gifted.”

Dowson also namechecks Mallinder, another predecessor at Franklin’s Gardens, as a significant mentor. “It was my good fortune to be guided by highly engaging people,” he says. “Jim had a significant influence on my rugby life, my training methods, how I interact with people.”

Saints play appealing football, which became obvious in the instance of their new signing. The import was part of the Clermont XV beaten in the continental tournament in last season when Tommy Freeman scored a hat-trick. Belleau admired the style sufficiently to buck the pattern of UK players moving to France.

“A mate phoned me and said: ‘We know of a fly-half from France who’s looking for a team,’” Dowson recalls. “My response was: ‘We don’t have funds for a imported playmaker. Another target will have to wait.’

‘He’s looking for new challenges, for the possibility to challenge himself,’ my friend told me. That interested me. We met with Belleau and his communication was outstanding, he was eloquent, he had a sense of humour.

“We questioned: ‘What do you want from this?’ He responded to be trained, to be challenged, to be in a new environment and away from the French league. I was saying: ‘Welcome aboard, you’re a great person.’ And he turned out to be. We’re blessed to have him.”

Dowson states the 20-year-old Henry Pollock provides a particular energy. Has he encountered a player like him? “Never,” Dowson responds. “All players are unique but he is unusual and remarkable in many ways. He’s fearless to be himself.”

Pollock’s sensational try against their opponents last season showcased his freakish talent, but a few of his animated on-field antics have brought accusations of arrogance.

“He sometimes comes across as arrogant in his conduct, but he’s not,” Dowson says. “Plus he's not taking the piss the whole time. In terms of strategy he has ideas – he’s no fool. I feel sometimes it’s portrayed that he’s only a character. But he’s clever and good fun to have around.”

Not many directors of rugby would admit to sharing a close bond with a assistant, but that is how Dowson frames his relationship with Vesty.

“Sam and I share an inquisitiveness around various topics,” he notes. “We run a reading group. He aims to discover various elements, seeks to understand each detail, desires to try new experiences, and I believe I’m the similar.

“We discuss lots of topics beyond rugby: films, books, thoughts, creativity. When we met the Parisian club previously, the landmark was under renovation, so we had a brief exploration.”

One more fixture in Gall is looming: The Saints' comeback with the Prem will be temporary because the continental event kicks in next week. The French side, in the foothills of the mountain range, are the initial challenge on the coming weekend before the Bulls visit the following weekend.

“I’m not going to be overconfident enough to {