Northampton boss hails 'mature Myler'
Mallinder said Saints deserve to be in the Heineken Cup
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Friday, 22, May 2009 11:44
Stephen Myler's goal-kicking talents were singled out for praise by Northampton's director of rugby Jim Mallinder after the club's 15-3 victory over Bourgoin at The Stoop to win the Challenge Cup.
Myler kicked all 15 of Saints' points in a domineering display, which was dogged by outbreaks of violence and a red card for Jean-Phillippe Genevois for punching Courtney Lawes.
Stephen Parra and Neil Best were also sin-binned after trading blows in the first half.
England hooker Dylan Hartley, who received the man of the match award, was at the heart of a gritty and at times violent contest between the two teams' forward packs.
Mallinder admitted: "It wasn't pretty, it was a tough cup final," before going on to praise Myler's contribution to the Saints' trophy-winning campaign.
"It was a real steely performance from Stephen Myler, he's maturing all the time," Mallinder said after the game.
"He was brilliant in the semi-final, and today he was great in defence and attack and to have a goal-kicker like him means a lot to the team."
After gaining promotion back into the Guinness Premiership last season, Mallinder described winning silverware in their first campaign back in the top flight as a "really good achievement".
The win means Northampton have secured qualification for the next season's Heineken Cup.
Mallinder commenteed: "There will be some great teams in the Heineken Cup, but we're a big club with great support, and it's where we deserve to be."