Blues and Mob win friendlies as season nears

​The Premiership Cup gets under way on September 9, with the Championship season commencing on October 21, so clubs are busy getting key minutes under their belts.

Blues secured their first victory over Northampton Saints since 1994 with a morale boosting 33-24 victory over their Premiership neighbours to conclude their pre-season schedule.

After Pat Tapley went over early on to give Blues the lead, ex-Bedford man George Hendy scored twice in as many minutes to turn the scoreboard around, before Angus Scott-Young added a third.

Tapley’s hsecond got Blues back into the game just before the break to reduce the scores to 19-12, then levelled the scoring eight minutes after the restart, getting a driving maul to perfection and sending Jacob Fields crashing to the line.

Matt Worley got the next before Henry Pollock replied for Saints, James Grayson’s missed conversion keeping Blues in-front and then Luke Frost going over for the hosts to secure the win.

*A strong set-piece and forward display provided the foundations for Ampthill, as they overcame Nottingham 17-7, Harri Williams, Jasper McGuire and Ben Chapman with the tries.

Head coach Paul Turner said: “We played quite well I thought, our ambition was good, and we could have had a couple more scores. It’s been a good exercise, and it’s always good to win but friendlies aren’t always about that."