Coach plans to have a ball

Two down one to go. John Steele, like more ruthless and ambitious men before him, has discovered that fighting on more than one front can be a ruinous experience. The difference between professional rugby and military dictators is that, in rugby, it happens more by accident than design.

Not so long ago, Northampton were leading the Allied Dunbar Premiership, England's blue riband; they reached the final of the Tetley's Bitter Cup and, of course, successfully fought off the tenacious challenge of Llanelli in the semi-final of the Heineken Cup.

After flagging in the premiership and losing to Wasps in the national knockout cup, the Saints are now marching, if that is the correct word, to only one battlefield, the final of the European Cup in which they will meet Munster at Twickenham, the scene of their shattering defeat to Wasps.

Nor will the venue provide the midland club with home comforts. Upwards of 30,000 Irishmen will attempt to turn the London stadium into a branch of Thomond Park - Munster's fortress in Limerick.

Even before the latest setback, Steele, Northampton's director of rugby, had confided that one major triumph was a realistic goal. It is Steele's style. Of course the possibility of a unique triple crown was intoxicating but in his heart of hearts he knew it was beyond any team in the modern game.

Steele's heart has always been in Northampton, even when he was performing minor miracles as coach in keeping London-Scottish afloat in the premiership against all the odds before the Scottish Exiles and Richmond were sold down the Thames in a so called merger with London-Irish.

His work did not go unnoticed. Nevertheless, when Ian McGeechan, who had signed a six-year contract with Northampton finally received an offer he couldn't refuse from the Scottish rugby union last year to coach his native country, the name of Steele to succeed him at Franklin's Gardens was not at the top of everybody's list.

After the demise of London-Scottish, Steele and his family drove to the Lizard in Cornwall to contemplate the future. It might have seemed like Land's End but then he took a call from somebody who was apparently wearing a halo.

"I'd let it be known to Northampton that my contract with London-Scottish was at an end," Steele said. "I was wondering `where do I go from here?' I was on a long list of candidates at Northampton." And that list included some very big hitters from the southern hemisphere.

Steele was asked to contact Keith Barwell, Northampton's millionaire chairman and, as they say in the theatre, principal angel. "After a chat I was fortunate enough to be offered the job. It was a nice surprise. "I'd always harboured a dream of going back to the club and this was the ultimate way of doing it. Northampton is very dear to me. I'd had some marvellous times there as a player and I'm grateful for the opportunity to have some more good times."

Grateful? you get the impression he'd have polished Barwell's shoes if it meant getting the job.

Steele, who joined Northampton in 1988 and left in 1995 after accumulating 1385 points, was a neat, compact stand-off whose forte was kicking goals.

"The team were bottom of the second division and then there was a revolution at an annual general meeting with leading members taking over the committee". There was a huge transformation.

Last season, when there was no Europe to worry about for the English club who had boycotted the competition, McGeechan was given extra funds with one goal in mind - to win the premiership and put one over the club's arch midlands rivals, Leicester, but Northampton finished runners-up to the Tigers who, of course, have retained the premiership this season.

Steele inherited a powerful, ready-made squad from McGeechan, complete with an academy providing back-up. "There was no need to shake things up, just utilise the resources already in place. Ian had finetuned the technical aspects and I occasionally run things past him.

"He's very approachable. I want to make changes without anyone knowing they're really happening. I don't want Northampton pigeon-holed into a forward side or a kicking side or whatever. There are so many different ways of doing things."

The Academy in which young players are groomed for sainthood is close to Steele's heart, even though he can boast a team with world class performers like Lam, Rodber, Pountney, Pagel and Mendez.

Two graduates, the hooker Steve Walter and the wing Ben Cohen, were named during the season in the full England squad. "I have no sympathy," Steele said, "for clubs who invest in highly paid overseas players and then whinge when they suffer injuries. All our players who were in the World Cup have been injured and we replaced them with the young guys who did a terrific job for us.

" With a salary cap it's the only way to strengthen your squad without spending money. Northampton have invested in the Academy for three years and I'm delighted to see it paying dividends but there should be an integrated approach with the RFU. Why should they pick the fruit that we grow?"

Steele, who has a Scottish grandfather and an Irish mother, was born in Cambridge and played for the army, Northampton and London-Scottish.

He knew Barwell from his previous existence at Franklin's Gardens. "Keith has spent a lot of time and money building the club up and we have stayed ahead of the game. It's managed to combine pre-professional traditions with the modern era. This is a rugby town with a brilliant ground and a great following."

Barwell may have been the power broker behind the rise of Northampton but he was also responsible in part, for their fall in the final of the Tetley's Bitter Cup. He ridiculed Wasps and predicted that Northampton would win by 30 points.

The London club exploited his remarks and forced him to eat his words. By winning at Twickenham, Wasps guaranteed themselves a place in the Heineken Cup next season.

Northampton were only afforded that luxury last Sunday with a last ditch victory over Newcastle which secured them fifth place in the premiership and the final berth in the Heineken Cup. "If we hadn't qualified it would have meant even more pressure against Munster," Steele said. "There's been so much tension but we can now relax a bit."

Nick Beal, who brings so much to the Northampton attack, is out with a broken leg and the England scrumhalf, Matt Dawson, who dislocated a shoulder, is unlikely to be fit in time to face Munster. Paul Grayson, whose goal kicking has sustained Northampton in Europe will probably play full back with Alistair Hepher at stand-off and Dom Malone at scrumhalf.

When Barwell appointed Steele, he said: "We could have gone for Cinderella but we chose an ugly sister. Having lost two legs of the triple crown, Northampton are still on their way to the ball. Against the Irish province Steele will be praying that this time the slipper fits."