Late Smith Score Seals Thrilling Northampton Victory

In a heart-stopping finale, England fly-half Fin Smith scored a last-minute try to propel Northampton Saints to a 35-28 win over Exeter Chiefs at Sandy Park. The match seemed destined for a draw after replacement winger Paul Brown-Bampoe's 78th-minute charge-down try, converted by Henry Slade, but Smith's dummy and subsequent try broke Chiefs' hearts. Northampton's director of rugby, Paul Dowson, praised his team's perseverance, saying, 'We stuck at it again in what was another proper game... We've got a lot of trust in our attacking system.' Exeter had begun strongly, with England flyer Immanuel Feyi-Waboso scoring after just 82 seconds, and they doubled their lead through centre Will Rigg. However, Northampton fought back, with tries from Alex Mitchell and Ollie Sleightholme, to level the score at 14-14 by half-time. The second half was cautious until Campbell Ridl's try put Exeter ahead, but Smith's late heroics sealed the win for the Premiership leaders.