Foden flash of brilliance keeps Saints in hunt

Ben Foden enhanced his growing reputation by scoring the decisive try that enabled Northampton to sustain the pressure on the Premiership leaders, Leicester Tigers, with a win at Leeds.

The Saints had an abundance of possession but failed to take their chances and did not seal their 14-7 victory until three minutes from the end when Foden crowned a highly impressive performance by latching onto Bruce Reihana's clever grubber. Battling Leeds, meanwhile, secured a valuable bonus point in their fight against relegation.

Jim Mallinder, the Northampton director of rugby, was full of praise for the England full-back. "Ben is a class player, he is very dangerous and it was a class pick-up to finish. He made a couple of quality runs in the first half but some very good last-ditch tackling prevented him from getting fully away," he said.

However, Mallinder was not so impressed by his team's overall performance: "It was not a good performance. We were not at our best and we tried to force too much ball; but at least we got the job done. Leeds have a strong scrum and line-out and a competitive back-row and I think they will survive in the Premiership this season."

Harlequins director of rugby Conor O'Shea believes his side can focus on fighting for a top-six finish after banishing relegation fears with a 23-14 victory over Newcastle. Describing the impact as "the release of a huge pressure valve", O'Shea insisted Heineken Cup qualification is not beyond his team's reach.

The outstanding Nick Evans dominated proceedings, with the former All Black fly-half scoring two tries, which he converted, and kicking three penalties. O'Shea said: "I was disappointed in that our error count let them into the game at times when we should have been in total charge. Fortunately, Nick Evans was absolutely outstanding and made sure we came away with the points, but the lads are disappointed with the way they performed."

Steve Bates, the Newcastle director of rugby, said: "A number of issues left me disappointed: the loss of a bonus point so near the end was tough, and I was disappointed that the game did not flow as it should have done.

"When allowed to play, both teams tried to attack, but given that referees are supposed to be more positive at the breakdown, we didn't see too much of that. As a result players began taking the law into their own hands in that area.

"However, I'm very proud of the players who have shown enormous character handling three games in a week. We created a couple of great opportunities, took one and missed one. At 16-14 it could have gone either way, so to leave with nothing is harsh."