By PAUL REES

Lewis Ludlam left the Franklin’s Gardens turf in a Northampton jersey for perhaps the last time on Friday night, six years after he thought about ending his career because he feared it was going nowhere.
The 2017-18 campaign had been a chastening one for the Saints. They finished in the bottom half of the Premiership and in four meetings with Saracens in the league and Europe conceded a total of 234 points.
They suffered seven successive Premiership defeats at one point but despite the struggles, Ludlam’s only league start, and first for the Saints, came on the opening weeken...