Manoa pride as pack powers Saints to win at Worcester

The big American took advantage of the dominance up front to register his first try of the season in the 27-18 win at Sixways.

Saints turned the screw to totally dominate the Warriors pack and the pressure resulted in a crucial Premiership victory.

Manoa, who joined Saints from San Francisco Golden Gate in 2011, played a key role in his side’s relentless mauling and he was delighted with the result.

“The mauling went really well,” he said. “We talked about it through the week and we knew it was going to be important because of the ground, and it was.

“Everyone had a role to play. They all knew what they had to do when it came down to the pack, so it was good.

“I think it’s one of the best ones we’ve played as a pack. It was good from the squad and there was some good defence on Saturday as well.”

Saints had gone into the game on the back of a disappointing 27-11 defeat to Gloucester a week earlier.

But Manoa says he and his team-mates upped their game on the paddock, eventually reaping the rewards on Saturday.

“(In training) there was a better understanding, more communication,” he said. “You could see that on Saturday when we played. Everybody was just listening to each other.

“Even though we were down twice, two players (Dylan Hartley and Courtney Lawes) got yellow carded, we sucked it up and kept playing.”