Contepomi monopoly sinks Saints

Bristol 32 Northampton 24

When Bristol produced one of the more notable performances of the season by outplaying Leicester at Welford Road in the quarter-finals of the Zurich Championship two weeks ago, they did so in a quagmire at the height of what appeared to be the monsoon season. Yesterday the West Country club, in the guise of Felipe Contepomi, progressed to the final on a pitch that looked like something out of the Gobi Desert. A team for all seasons.

This match may not have meant quite as much to Northampton (they have already qualified for the Heineken Cup) but it meant, if not the world, then Europe to Bristol. Ten months into the season and about 130 years after they were founded, Bristol finally qualified for next season's Heineken Cup and in the process earned their long-suffering supporters a trip to Twickenham on Saturday when they will meet the winners of today's semi-final between Sale and Gloucester.

Bristol, eighth in the Premiership and the last club to qualify for the Championship, gained England's sixth and final qualifying place for Europe's showpiece event – denying Newcastle in the process – by beating Northampton here by two goals and six penalties to three tries and three penalties.

Contepomi (he and his clubmate Agustin Pichot will play for Argentina against England in Buenos Aires later this month) scored all Bristol's points in a remarkable exhibition. The stand-off's contribution, which was probably worth about £1m to Bristol, was obviously crucial as Northampton threatened to turn the Memorial Ground dustbowl into a scene from The Grapes of Wrath.

The Saints were leading when Contepomi scored his first try in the 17th minute. Phil Christophers, the German-born wing who is in the England squad for Argentina, began proceedings with an elusive run down the left and when the ball was switched to the right Contepomi accelerated through a gap to touch down. Northampton, who refused to lie down, hit the front again after 34 minutes when Nick Beal and John Leslie combined to send the excellent Andrew Blowers over unopposed: 13-14.

Once again Contepomi nudged his side ahead. In the final minute of the first half he kicked a penalty and in the first minute after the break he scored his second try; again it was a cracker. On the halfway line the Argentinian released David Rees with an inside pass and the centre was stopped just short after a great run. However, when the ball was recycled Pichot sent Contepomi in near the posts. Leading 23-14, Bristol were still not safe.

After Contepomi had produced a crushing, try-saving tackle on Beal, the hooker Neil McCarthy was shown a yellow card for tackling Craig Moir when the wing did not have the ball. It was the signal for Northampton to turn the screw. While Bristol were down to 14 men, the Saints scored two tries, both well worked, through Grant Seely and Blowers and at that point Bristol were trailing 23-24.

''We were vulnerable and I thought we had lost the game,'' Dean Ryan, the Bristol coach, said. Ryan, of course, had reckoned without Contepomi. After Matt Carrington had got over in the right-hand corner only to be recalled for a foot in touch, Bristol, now restored to full strength, went all out for the winning score. After sustained pressure Rees managed to cross the line but the referee Chris White disallowed the score because of a double movement. Bristol, though, won compensation. Leslie was sent to the sin-bin for persistent off-side, the offence earning the home team a penalty from a simple position. Naturally, Contepomi bisected the uprights and with four minutes remaining Bristol had regained the lead at 26-24.

With Northampton down to 14 men, the boot was now on the other foot, more pertinently Contepomi's foot. In the 79th minute Dom Malone was penalised for careless use of the boot and Contepomi made no mistake. There was still time for the one-man scoring machine to kick his sixth penalty, this one from the halfway line, to complete a 100 per cent kicking record. ''This club has been on its knees,'' Ryan said. "Qualifying for Europe is enormous not just for the fans but for the commercial side of things. The achievement has not sunk in yet.''

Wayne Smith, Northampton's coach, said he was disappointed at not providing another Twickenham final for the club's supporters but made a point of not criticising his players. "We gave it everything,'' the former All Blacks coach said. "The season is too long and something has got to be done about the structure. We've got to give these boys some rest.''

It's flaming June and about the only thing missing from the Memorial Ground yesterday were buckets and spades. Not that it bothered Bristol's supporters, more than 5,000 of them turning up here on the hottest day of the year. They gave their team a standing ovation, grateful for the opportunity to return to Twickenham for the first time since 1988.

Bristol 32
Tries: Contepomi 2, Cons: Contepomi 2, Pens: Contepomi 6

Northampton 24
Tries: Blowers 2, Seely, Pens: Grayson 3

Half-time: 16-14 Attendance: 5,292

Bristol: L Best; M Carrington, D Rees, J Little (capt), P Christophers; F Contepomi, A Pichot; D Crompton (P Johnstone, 50), N McCarthy, E Bergamaschi, G Archer (A Sheridan, 50), A Brown, C Short, B Sturnham, M Lipman (R Beattie, 67).

Northampton: N Beal; J Brooks, M Tucker, J Leslie, C Moir; P Grayson, D Malone; R Morris, S Thompson, M Stewart (C Budgen, 50), J Phillips (R Hunter, 50), O Brouzet, A Blowers, G Seely, B Pountney (capt).

Referee: C White (Cheltenham).