It's go-time for Saints as they seek to reignite title challenge at Saracens

The black, green and gold have got off to a slow start in the league this season, winning just three of their seven Premiership matches so far.

They now face a key set of fixtures before returning to European action next month, starting with a trip to Saracens on Sunday (kick-off 3pm).

Following that, reigning champions Saints will host Newcastle Falcons and Bath.

And head coach Vesty said: “You can't let games slip and we've been guilty of not performing for long enough in (Premiership) games.

"You don't get many chances now so you've got to go, and we're in that place now.

"We're focusing on our performance because that will give us the best chance of winning.

"These next three Prem games are a real chance for us to push up the league.”

Saints return to domestic action on a high, having claimed a superb 30-21 win against Vodacom Bulls in South Africa last Saturday.

"We want to carry that consistency of performance through, home and away, and take it through the rest of this year,” Vesty said.

"In the past two weeks, we've really done it and that's the challenge.

"We've played well in patches overall and not played well in patches.

"Our focus is to be more consistent through 80-minute performances.

"We're slightly disappointed that we feel we could have done better with some of our performances – and results have shown that.

"Consistency is the big word, carrying that through wherever we are.”

However, Saints face a tough task against a Saracens team who have beaten the Bulls and Stade Francais during the past two weeks.

"I think Saracens have been very good,” Vesty said.

"They are a very proud, quality rugby team with a big history.

"They're playing well.”