Lee Radford could be the Premiership’s signing this season. Northampton’s new defensive coach has come from rugby league and has given the Saints the steel to play up their swagger.
Last season Northampton boasted the league’s best offense but also its second-worst defence. Only bottom side Newcastle Falcons have conceded more points and tries. They lost 38-15 to Saracens in the play-off semi-final.
Radford was under no illusions about the Saints’ reputation for instability. “From day one, every presentation I’ve watched, every meeting I’ve attended, every interview I’ve listened to is the same thing: they can attack, but they can’t defend,” Radford said. “I wanted to change that. If you ask what Northampton is about people will say attack. “I want people to say at the end of the season that they were quite resilient and difficult to play against.”
Radford says they are still taking “baby steps” in the process, but Northampton already look like a team that has changed from last season. Two weeks ago Saints returned to Saracens’ StoneX Stadium to end the English champions’ five-match winning streak with a gutsy 18-12 win.
Then last week they made 188 tackles to earn United Rugby Championship runners-up Glasgow Warriors a bonus point in a 28-19 win in the rain at Scotstoun.
Northampton’s defense has improved in every aspect. They concede nine fewer points per game than last season, resulting in 10 percent less success at the line and a 16 percent increase in defensive red zone efficiency. More impressive is the vision test. Against both Saracens and Glasgow, Northampton dominated the physical exchanges they had not been able to achieve for years against stronger opposition.
‘There is no cheat code; It’s just hard work’
Radford has a wealth of experience as a rugby league coach, winning the Challenge Cup with Hull in 2016 and 2017 and was Samoa’s defense coach when they reached the 2022 World Cup final. He has also been on scouting missions in other sports, but he maintains there is no great mystery about what makes a great defense.
“Over the years I’ve discovered there’s no cheat code for this,” Radford said. “It’s just hard work. This is repetition. This is the basic information. That’s what we tried to do. We’re not where we need to be yet, but we’re closer than when I first arrived.
“All technical details will be wasted if energy, effort and intention are not applied. Everyone will make a defensive mistake, whether it’s a misread, bad technique, or poor execution to touch, but energy and effort can cover up most of those.”
However, this requires the participation of the playing group, which Radford clearly achieved. As a player, Radford made his debut for Hull FC at the age of 16 and much of his fire showed in derbies against Hull KR. “The city is divided from east and west by a bridge. Hull KR is in the east and Hull FC is in the west,” Radford said.
“I grew up in the east but played for Hull FC in the west, so wherever I go. This is a unique derby. Houses are enemies to each other. The bars open at 10 o’clock and the whole city comes to a standstill.”
Radford’s football career lasted 17 years; He played five times in England with Bradford Bulls and won two Super League finals. Outside of rugby he also owns a golf course in Hull, as well as many pubs and restaurants. His energy is infectious and his focus is single-minded.
His goal is not to thwart the Saints’ attack in any way. One of the reasons he joined was because he loved watching them play. Instead, Radford wants to ensure that players are as passionate about playing off the ball as they are with it. He even cites Ben Earl’s over-the-top celebration of the opposition’s miscue as an exemplary example.
“I want them to celebrate defense,” Radford said. “It’s funny to watch them celebrate the tries we scored instead of celebrating a mistake. If you can get to that level then you’re halfway there. “You can give Earl all the stick you want, I’d call that smart.
“He stays in the zone and that keeps him in the zone. As they celebrate forcing the other team into a mistake, a knock-on effect occurs that hurts the other team. “He inflates his tires in the same way.”
The visit of Toulon’s monster pack of former Saints David Ribbans and Kieran Brookes to Franklin Gardens on Friday night represents another foreboding challenge. He has taken the bulk of the 70 points in matches against Northampton, La Rochelle and Racing 92 in the last two seasons.
These Saints are now made of harder material. “All I ask is that when I listen to a podcast or TV show, I don’t hear them talking about defense,” Radford said. said. “That would be a success.”