Northampton boss Phil Dowson reflected on an incident he described as “uncalled for and out of order” after Henry Pollock appeared to be grabbed by the throat following Saints’ Investec Champions Cup final defeat against Bordeaux-Begles.
Northampton suffered heartache as Bordeaux-Begles claimed an epic 28-20 victory at the Principality Stadium.
A pulsating contest saw the French club record their first Champions Cup success, but a fracas broke out after the final whistle.
“There was a fracas at the end, there was foul play involved,” Dowson said.
“I have been assured that the touch judge has seen it and will deal with it appropriately.
“Henry Pollock was particularly upset by it because I think it was uncalled for and out of order. He reacted, and the officials have told me that they will deal with it.”
Saints’ England fly-half Fin Smith said: “They were after him (Pollock). I don’t think they liked him. He will be alright.
“I remember they (Bordeaux players) all sort of charged at him and were trying to get hold of him.
“I am surprised if you have just won a European Cup, the first thing you want to do is start a fight with a 20-year-old. I felt that was interesting.”
Saints skipper Fraser Dingwall added: “I don’t think there was bad blood (in the game).
“The only thing that I questioned at times was how much can we constantly have the values of the game applied on things like appealing.
“I think there were a couple of moments where boys potentially didn’t adhere to those things, and that is going to spark a reaction.”
Saints gave it everything after losing backs George Furbank and James Ramm to injuries inside the opening five minutes.
Seeking a first Champions Cup title for 25 years, Northampton went toe-to-toe with their opponents as flanker Alex Coles’ try double underpinned an outstanding Saints display.
Smith added two penalties and two conversions, but Bordeaux’s superior finishing power delivered two tries for wing Damian Penaud, while locks Adam Coleman and Cyril Cazeaux also touched down.
Matthieu Jalibert booted a penalty and conversion, and captain Maxime Lucu also kicked a penalty as Bordeaux made it five years in a row for French clubs to win the tournament.
“There was loads of fight, and that sums us up this year. We were never going to go away, but unfortunately we just gave them too many opportunities and didn’t win the critical moments,” Dingwall told Premier Sports.
“It is frustrating when it is such small margins, but that is the way this game is.
“Scrum, lineout, turnovers, we stayed in there, but unfortunately when you play against top teams you can’t give them opportunities, and they will get one right.
“We didn’t fire as many shots as we could have done. It is going to be frustrating to look back on.”
Watch the Lions tour of Australia live on Sky Sports in 2025
Sky Sports will exclusively show the 2025 British and Irish Lions tour of Australia, with all three Tests against the Wallabies and six warm-up matches to be shown exclusively live.
