From Pretoria to Paris... Hutchinson eager to taste more cup success

And that certainly seems to be the case for Saints as they travel to the French capital this weekend.

Phil Dowson's men currently have 10 points from a possible 10 in the Investec Champions Cup, having won at home to Castres and defied the altitude in South Africa to defeat Vodacom Bulls.

And Saints would dearly love to put another win in their suitcase when they travel home from Saturday evening's clash with Stade Français at Stade Jean-Bouin.

“Obviously, we had that really ‘European’ trip to South Africa, did really well there and I felt that was a big challenge for us,” said Saints centre Rory Hutchinson. “I don’t see why it’s any different to go to Paris this week and get another five points.

“We’re really looking forward to the challenge, we’re going to put our best foot forward and do what we can.

“I haven’t been to Paris for a long time, so I’m looking forward to it – maybe a bit of fois gras and some wine, after the game.

“It’s a new challenge for the boys this week, obviously - it flips so quickly between the Prem and Europe.

“We’re looking forward to it, we’re two from two at the moment and we want to go four from four, which puts us in a good position to then hopefully go a step further than we did last year.”

Hutchinson and Co made it all the way to the semi-finals last season before eventually being edged out by Leinster at a sold-out Croke Park.

But the black, green and gold have shown they can win big games, as they did last Sunday, beating Bath in a Gallagher Premiership thriller at cinch Stadium at Franklin's Gardens.

“We knew it was going to be a big challenge and we spoke about how it was disappointing to see us where we’re sat in the table.,” Hutchinson said.

“I feel like we’ve got a lot more to give, a lot of people may think that we’re not going to do it (make the play-offs) and we know among this circle at the club here that we are going to keep fighting and keep doing what we know we can because we have a lot to give.

“So, a result like that is great, but we’ve still got a long way to go and we’re looking forward to what comes next.”

What comes next is this clash in the French capital.

And Hutchinson will be called upon to continue his strong showing so far this season.

“I felt like I had a little bit of catching up to do because I missed quite a lot of last year with injuries and what not, so I’m just pretty happy and grateful to be back on the field and being able to help the team,” he said.

With George Furbank injured, Hutchinson's versatility is key as he is able to take some of the weight off Fin Smith's shoulders at fly-half.

“It’s nice to have the skill set still, but obviously it’s not my first position to go to,” the Scotland international said. “But if I’ve got to help the team, I’m willing to do that.

“It’s always good to have. I think 12 and 10 at this club is quite similar in terms of distribution, so it’s been nice to get a few minutes there.

“When I was with the Under-20s for Scotland, I played a bit at 10 and for a bit in the Under-18s. I think I was at 10 and Adam Hastings was at 13.

“I then just slowly started moving out to centre and I quite enjoyed centre, to be honest.”

With so many injuries right now, Saints need every ounce of the versatility they have built in their back-line.

“It definitely helps,” Hutchinson said. “I think it makes the coaches’ job a little bit easier because nowadays on the bench people can cover certain positions – wingers can cover 15 or wingers can cover centre, centres can cover 10 or nines can cover wing.

“It just makes us so versatile and I think that’s great to have.

“Rugby is a physical sport and injuries do happen – you saw with Bath at the weekend with (flanker) Josh Bayliss having to play on the wing for 60 minutes, or however long it was.

“I think for us, we lost George Hendy so Rammy (James Ramm) then had to go to 15 and it just looked seamless, and I think it’s really important we train like that as well. A lot of boys get a lot of minutes and a lot of reps in certain different positions.

“It’s really important to make it as seamless as possible.”