Northampton Saints were crowned Premiership champions after a 26-17 victory over Exeter Chiefs in the final at Twickenham. George Hendy scored two tries in four minutes to turn the match after Exeter had taken a 17-14 lead with 15 minutes remaining.
Fast start for Saints
Northampton opened the scoring inside two minutes when Tommy Freeman capitalised on a mix-up between Exeter defenders Ollie Woodburn and Manny Feyi-Waboso to touch down. Exeter responded through Campbell Ridl, who sprinted 45 metres after intercepting a Freeman offload, with Henry Slade converting.
Exeter lost hooker Max Norey to a lower leg injury early, replaced by Joseph Dweba. Northampton also lost influential scrum-half Archie McParland to injury in the first quarter, with Alex Mitchell coming on.
Smith strike before halftime
Fin Smith sliced through for a try and added the conversion to put Saints 14-7 ahead. Exeter hit back just before halftime when Josh Iosefa-Scott crashed over from a lineout that went astray, but Slade missed the conversion, leaving the gap at 14-12.
Exeter take lead
Exeter improved their lineout after halftime and took the lead through captain Dafydd Jenkins, who charged over in the 51st minute while Northampton were down to 14 men after Josh Kemeny's yellow card. Slade's conversion made it 17-14.
Jenkins was then yellow-carded for an upright challenge on George Furbank, and Saints capitalised. Hendy scored twice in quick succession, first from a break by Henry Pollock and then after a clever offload from Furbank. Fin Smith converted both to make it 26-17.
Defensive stand secures title
Exeter pushed for a comeback but Northampton's defence held firm. The win gives Saints their second domestic title in three years, adding to their 2024 victory over Bath. Captain George Furbank, heading to Harlequins this summer, lifted the new, heavier trophy.
According to match reports, the attendance was 81,126. Exeter had reached the final after beating Leicester, Saracens, and Bath in the playoffs.
