Hendy Scores Three as Eight-Try Northampton Rout Pretoria Bulls

George Hendy scored a hat-trick as the Saints secured maximum points from their opening two European games with an eight-try hammering of the Bulls.

Sleightholme scored two tries and Henry Pollock secured the bonus point try inside an hour as a dominant Saints team ran riot in the second half.

The Bulls were within touching distance with the score 14-5 at the interval but a sin-binning to prop Tshakweni in the 53rd minute for a needless trip proved very costly and they did not score a point in the final forty minutes.

International Fin Smith added 10 points with the boot as Northampton moved to the summit of Pool Four on superior points difference from holders Bordeaux with both sides on 10 points.

The manner of this win, coming after a 35-27 away win at Pau last week, means last year's losing finalists Saints could not have hoped for a better start as they look to improve on that in this campaign.

Bulls fly-half Kade Wolhuter missed an early penalty before the hosts took the lead when Pollock broke before feeding Sleightholme who showed his pace to sprint away to the try line.

But an error from the winger allowed the Bulls back into the game as the ball slipped from his grasp in the tackle, allowing Pretoria winger Stravino Jacobs to hack the ball forward and show electric speed of his own to reply after 22 minutes.

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

Saints were dominant in possession and territory and were being given a helping hand from the opposition fly-half Kade Wolhuter who twice missed touch with penalty kicks to reinvite pressure onto the visitors.

That told after 48 minutes when Smith was again the creator, stepping inside to deceive the onrushing defense before delivering a perfectly weighted left-footed kick over the line for George Hendy to collect his second and Northampton's third.

Bulls prop Alulutho Tshakweni was then shown a yellow card for a tripping offense on Emmanuel Iyogun. The prop was insistent he had been responding to a trip momentarily before by Iyogun but the incident from the Northampton substitute was ruled unintentional when reviewed by the match officials.

Saints capitalized of having the numerical advantage to clinch the bonus point through Henry Pollock before Alex Coles and Ollie Sleightholme crossed as the hosts registered three tries in five frantic minutes.

Hendy completed his hat-trick with 12 minutes remaining and Kemeny strolled in for the eighth try of an outstanding afternoon for Northampton in the dying moments.

Rematch of Last Season's Final Next for Saints

The top two teams in the pool will face off in a rematch of last year's final when the tournament returns in the new year as Northampton travel to Bordeaux-Bègles. Northampton then round off the group phase with a fixture at home against Scarlets on 18 January.

The Pretoria Bulls, who have a single point from their opening two games, welcome Bristol Bears next before traveling to 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)