there's little doubt that the London side are hot favourites this afternoon. Over the past month, Ian McGeechan and Shaun Edward's side have found not only their form, but also the bloody-mindedness that was so visible during their Heineken Cup-winning year of 2004.

Lawrence Dallaglio looks back to his physically imposing best, while the excellent form of Eoin Reddan (right) has ignited a backline that had been dozing for most of the season. Northampton's backs, meanwhile, have posed little or no threat to anyone all season.

What the Saints do possess, however, is a bulky pack, well capable of grinding the opposition to a standstill and that's why Wasps can't fully depend on their monstrous back-row of Dallaglio, Joe Worsley and Tom Rees to win them this game. The selection of Danny Cipriani at out-half . . . it would have been Jeremy Staunton had he not broken his thumb last week . . .

suggests Wasps want to spread things a little wider than usual and you get the feeling that if they can get a couple of tries early on, then a low on con"dence Northampton will fold like the proverbial deckchair.

Don't bet against them being competitive for a while but we can't see Wasps losing. Anyway, it would be a shame if a side as limited and narrow-focused as Northampton won through to the 12th, and possibly last, Heineken Cup final.

WASPS M van Gisbergen; P Sackey, F Waters, D Waldouck, T Voyce; D Cipriani, E Reddan; P Vickery, R Ibanez, P Bracken, S Shaw, T Palmer, J Worsley, T Rees, L Dallaglio (c) NORTHAMPTON B Reihana (c); S Lamont, J Clarke, R Kydd, B Cohen; C Spencer, M Robinson; T Smith, M Cortese, J Brooks, D Browne, C Short, P Tupai, B Lewitt, D Browne