Northampton coach Jim Mallinder was happy with his side's performance despite struggling to see off Newcastle 25-13.
Saints coach pleased with battling win
Northampton coach Jim Mallinder was happy with his side's performance despite struggling to see off Newcastle 25-13.
Chris Ashton scored twice and Lee Dickson added a third try as Saints kept up their title push with a scruffy win against a battling Falcons side.
"Newcastle are always a hard team to break down and they have won at Wasps and London Irish this season," he said.
"During the 80 minutes we played some good stuff, we did make some mistakes but we made them trying to play some attacking rugby.
"We deserved to win but Newcastle were always a threat from their lineout and forward drives."
Mallinder also paid tribute to winger Chris Ashton, who scored two tries as he continued to advertise his international credentials.
"He has enjoyed a spell with the England squad and doesn't feel he has been dropped, and he knows he is a serious contender for a starting place for England. He is a fantastic finisher and his all-round game is improving."
Tense
Newcastle coach Steve Bates felt his side could have given Saints an even bigger run for their money in the second half.
"I was particularly disappointed that we didn't finish down that right hand side," he said. "It was a really good game, it was very tense and there was huge effort from both sides.
"We probably edged it on mistakes and Northampton's last try after another mistake from us put us out of the game.
"We thought if we could keep it to one score to well into the second half then we might have had a chance of a win. At 18-13 we were very much in it and if we had kept it a little more simple and played more sensibly we might have created a bit more pressure."
