Jim Mallinder saw plenty of room for improvement after Northampton Saints claimed a 21-18 victory over Treviso.
Saints chief relieved with narrow win in Treviso
Director of rugby Jim Mallinder saw plenty of room for improvement after Northampton Saints claimed a 21-18 victory over Treviso.
Saints scored three tries through Phil Dowson, Jon Clarke and Courtney Lawes, but were forced to cling on in the final 10 minutes after a penalty try set up a thrilling climax at Stadio Comunale di Monigo.
Mallinder said: "It's a very difficult place to play. They're a good side, as they showed last week. They scrum well, they maul well, they contest the ball at the breakdown and they've got a big kicking game.
"We made far too many mistakes. We can't blame the preparation. It doesn't help when the kick off keeps getting pushed back but we were poor in the first half.
"It was always about whether the game would be played or not, but good players prepare for every single game."
Treviso missed four kicks in the first half allowing flanker Dowson try to hand Northampton a 7-3 lead against the run of play, just before half-time.
Mallinder added: "It's always good to score just before half-time and we've done that in a few games recently.
"It's just a little disappointing that we didn't press on in the second half. We did improve but again it's difficult against a team such as Treviso who play the way they do."
Massive
The win puts Northampton top of Pool One, but their failure to clinch a bonus point could prove crucial at the end of the pool stages as they attempt to reach the quarter-finals.
"We're well and truly in the competition," Mallinder continued. "We've played four games and won three so we're doing well. We're looking forward to two massive games in rounds five and six."
Treviso coach Franco Smith said his team had proved they could compete at this level by pushing the Guinness Premiership outfit so close but were made to pay for momentary lapses in concentration.
Smith said: "We have shown in the two games with Northampton that we are up there at a level where we can compete in the Heineken Cup. If we were able to play regularly at this level, we are good enough to get a result.
"But the difference was a lack of concentration at crucial moments of the game, especially in defence. We made a few specific errors, such as missed tackles, but that is a problem when you are not used to playing against such strong opponents every week.
"We made mistakes at the end of the first half and beginning of the second half, but I'm happy with the way we came back. We tried to play some rugby and our first try showed we have ability in our backs and not just our forwards."
