Tom Pearson: Northampton back row praises ‘simple and direct’ messaging

Northampton back row Tom Pearson has praised the “simple and direct” messaging given by coaching staff as Saints look to improve their poor away record at Bristol Bears on Friday.

Saints bounced back from a disappointing derby defeat by Leicester Tigers with an emphatic 47-17 win over Sale last weekend.

Franklin’s Gardens has brought out the best of their occupants to preserve a 100% home record this Premiership season, but the Saints have yet to win an away match.

However, while their performances on the road have not been as strong, Pearson says the game plan does not alter no matter who they face or where.

“Going into games, the messaging is quite simple and very direct, which is great – it doesn’t overcomplicate it,” Pearson told the Saints Show on BBC Radio Northampton.

“Especially in attack and defence, quite a lot of the messages stay the same week in, week out.

“It’s about us doing the basics really well and executing aggressively, especially when we are under a bit of pressure.”

The reigning champions now face a team that are their polar opposite.

Bristol have won all three of their away appearances this season but lost both their home games in frustratingly narrow defeats.

If the DNA of Northampton is simplicity, then at Bristol Bears it’s unorthodoxy.

The Bears have scored the highest number of in-game points in the Premiership so far with 176 but have also conceded 145, the third highest in the division.

But their high-risk, high-reward strategy is working well enough to place them fourth in the table, five points above the Saints in fifth.

“Unorganised is harsh but they do like to play off the cuff a lot,” Pearson said.

“They’ve got good ball players so that’s something to be wary of, they can attack from anywhere so that’s been a big focus for this week – just never switching off.

“There’s a chance Bristol will get a good offload away or they will get a little break, it’s almost inevitable.

“But if we stay on system and stay on task, that’s going to help us going forward.”