Where are they now? The first Northampton Saints team to win a Premiership title
Northampton Saints last clinched a Premiership title in the 2013/14 season, defeating Saracens 24-20 in the final after extra-time.
10 years on, and Northampton have reached the final once again, where they defeated Bath 25-21 to end a decade-long wait for a second title.
We take a look at where the stars who won the?Premiership and Challenge Cup back in 2014 are now.
15 Ben Foden
After playing over 200 matches for Northampton Saints, England full-back Ben Foden brought his illustrious Premiership career to an end by heading to the USA and joining Rugby United New York.
He would play more than 30 games for the side before officially hanging up his boots.
Following his retirement, Foden tried his hand at coaching, working as the Iona University head coach and worked part-time with Fordham University. Now, he is a real estate agent at Douglas Elliman in New York.
14 Ken Pisi
The younger Pisi brother, Ken, continued to represent Saints up and until his departure at the end of the 2018/19 season having played well over 100 times for the Saints.
13 George Pisi
Older brother George was renowned for his hard-hitting defence and at the end of the 2015/16 season, he headed to Australia linking up with the Western Force after over 130 appearances for the Saints.
The brothers have both returned to New Zealand since hanging up their boots.
12 Luther Burrell
The powerful centre, who played professional rugby league and union, left Northampton in 2019 having represented the side over 120 times before returning to league for a season with Warrington. He did come back to the Premiership with Newcastle before bringing his career to an end in 2022.
Since retiring, Luther Burrell has opened up about his mental health issues as well as racism in rugby. He is now an engaging keynote speaker and conference host.
11 George North
The Wales legend left Northampton Saints in 2018 to link up with the Ospreys after nearly 100 games for the Premiership outfit.
Following the conclusion of the 2024 Six Nations, George North announced his retirement from Test rugby after 121 caps for Wales.
North is set to continue his career in France after signing with Pro D2 club Provence ahead of the 2024/25 season.
10 Stephen Myler
One of Northampton Saints’ greatest ever players, Stephen Myler played 330 times for the Premiership club before taking up a contract with London Irish in 2018 where he played two seasons.
He made the switch to the Ospreys in 2020 where he would finish his career following the conclusion of the 2022/23 season. The former fly-half has worked with the Wales Women’s team in a coaching role.
9 Kahn Fotuali’i
After leaving Northampton in 2016, Kahn Fotuali’i continued his career at Bath until joining Montpellier in 2019.
The ex-Samoa captain hung up his boots in 2020 and returned to New Zealand where he continued to play club rugby and represented Horowhenua-Kāpiti and Freyberg.
8 Sam Dickinson
Sam Dickinson stayed with Northampton Saints until 2018 before stints at Moseley and Ealing Trailfinders. At the age of 39, he is still turning out for Caldy RFC and featured for the side in the Premiership Rugby Cup during the 2023/24 season. Away from the rugby pitch, he is a self-employed woodworker making bespoke furniture pieces.
7 Tom Wood
Another all-time Northampton Saints great, Tom Wood hung up his boots in 2022 having notched up well over a double ton of appearances for the club. The former Saints captain has since stepped into the business world and in 2023 was appointed to a role within Premiership Rugby’s new Sporting Commission to help transform and strengthen the league’s?governance.
6 Calum Clark
Back-rower Calum Clark joined Saracens from Northampton in 2017 and would go on to play over 50 matches for the Londoners before hanging up his boots to take up a new position in the club as their Wellbeing and Personal Development Manager. The flanker founded Innate High Performance, a psychological services company for high performing people and is a performance coach at Coaching Impact.
5 Courtney Lawes
The legendary Northampton Saints forward announced his retirement from international rugby following the conclusion of the Rugby World Cup and played out his final season in the Premiership in 2023/24, clinching the title before making the move to France, joining Pro D2 club Brive.
4 Samu Manoa
The hard-hitting USA Eagles forward played well over 100 games for Northampton and continued his reputation as an abrasive forward with his moves to Toulon, Cardiff and finally Seattle – the latter who he played for as recently as 2023. Manoa has also started a sparkling wine company over the US.
3 Salesi Ma’afu
Salesi Ma’afu went on to play for the likes of Toulon, Cardiff, Gloucester and Narbonne after becoming a fan favourite at Franklin’s Gardens before hanging up his boots in 2018. Since then, he has been working as a coach and mentor at Dallaglio RugbyWorks, which was started by ex-England forward Lawrence Dallaglio.
2 Mike Haywood
Mike Haywood announced his retirement at the age of 31, finishing his professional career as a one-club player for Northampton, racking up an incredible 269 appearances. He went into coaching after hanging up his boots and returning to his old club, Colchester Rugby, as a forwards coach and also worked as a coach at St Joseph’s College.
1 Alex Corbisiero
The England and British & Irish Lions prop’s career was brought to a halt in 2016 after a succession of knee injuries. While he initially took a sabbatical, he later confirmed that he would not be returning to the rugby pitch. In 2019, Corbisiero was diagnosed with testicular cancer, which later spread to his lymph nodes, leading to a further spell of chemotherapy and ultimately beat the cancer.
Now, the scrum enthusiast is putting his knowledge of the set-piece to good use as the scrum coach of the San Diego Legion and works as a NBC rugby commentator. He is also a director at ASM sports group and Team Corbs.
Where are they now? The last Leinster team to win a Champions Cup title
Replacements
16 Dylan Hartley
The former England captain officially retired in 2019 after a lengthy spell on the sidelines with a knee injury. He finished his career with 97 England caps and 251 appearances for Northampton Saints. While he often takes up rugby punditry roles, he is an Ambassador for Aviv Clinics and a Consultant for Brown and Brown Insurance.
17 Alex Waller
2023/24 will be Alex Waller and brother Ethan’s final season at the Northampton, with the props bringing an end to their professional rugby careers. Alex has played well over 370 times for Saints and captained the side for three seasons.
18 Tom Mercey
Former prop Tom Mercey joined Saints from Saracens in 2010 before retiring in 2015 and stepping into the business world. He has held multiple top roles since with the likes of MBN Events and Premier Inn but is currently the Director and Chairman of Esports Awards as well as the Co-Founder and Chair of MEGA.
19 Christian Day
After retiring in 2018, having played more than 220 times for Saints, Christian Day has remained in the rugby world working with UK Anti-Doping while he is the General Secretary of the Rugby Players Association.
20 Phil Dowson
10 years on from the 2014 success and back-rower Phil Dowson has led the club back to the Premiership’s main event as their director of rugby. Dowson joined the Saints coaching staff as an assistant coach following his retirement at the end of the 2016/17 season. He was named as Chris Boyd successor as director of rugby ahead of the 2022/23 and has also coached the England XV team.
21 Lee Dickson
Club legend Lee Dickson is another double centurion for the Saints. Following his retirement from professional rugby, he has taken up the role of Master In Charge of Rugby at Barnard Castle School.
22 James Wilson
Playmaker James Wilson enjoyed a well-travelled rugby career playing for Southland, Brumbies, Highlanders, Chiefs and Bourgoin before joining Northampton Saints, who he played over 90 games, following which he would have stints at Bedford, Bath and at Mitsubishi Dynaboars before retiring in 2021. He has now taken his first steps into coaching, returning to Invercargill as an assistant coach for Southland.
23 Tom Stephenson
After six years at Northampton, Tom Stephenson played two years at London Irish before moving into the business world. He started as an
Asset Finance Advisor at Arc & co but is now a Director at RockCap and an Associate Director at Savills.
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