'You'd want to go out like Furbank has' - Dowson
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"If you were going to leave the club after 12 years, or however long it's been, with that many games and that much success, you'd want to do it the way George has done it because he's been unbelievable."
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Northampton captain George Furbank is hoping for "a fairytale finish" to his Saints career at Twickenham this weekend.
But as far as director of rugby Phil Dowson is concerned - as his quotes above imply - it's already been a farewell to remember.
Full-back Furbank will make his final appearance for his boyhood club this Saturday as he leads out the side for their Prem Rugby final against Exeter.
"I think he's probably sorry to go," Dowson told The Saints Show.
"It's difficult because we both wanted a deal to work but couldn't make it work."
Furbank will not be the only Saints player receiving plenty of attention at the weekend.
Young flanker Henry Pollock is building a reputation for himself at the very top of the game, both for his ability on the pitch and for his personality.
The latter of which, Dowson believes is misunderstood.
"He's always been mature, he's always understood the situation, professionalism and what he wanted," he said.
"Some people mistake his exuberance for arrogance - he's confident."
Dowson will want to see that confidence on full display during Saturday's final, though it will be Pollock's first after missing the side's 2024 victory away on international duty with England Under-20s.
His director, meanwhile, has been here before - both as a coach during the Saints' 2024 title win and as a player in 2014 - and it's a feeling he relishes despite all the pressure.
"You enjoy the tensions and the nerves," the former England flanker said.
"These are the occasions that you want to play in, that you want to coach in and these are the occasions that I'm determined to enjoy."
One way in which Dowson prepares his squad for success is to look outside of rugby union.
"One of the best things I did was go up to Wigan [Warriors] to meet Matt Peet [Wigan's head coach]," Dowson said.
Warriors are the most successful club in rugby league history and have enjoyed recent success with four Super League titles, three Challenge Cups and two World Cup Challenge trophies to their name in the past decade.
"How they produce that environment together, how they develop players, how they try to build success year on year," Dowson added.
"Going into a different environment, talking to a different coach and someone else, there is just more ideas on how you manage people."
Despite such focus on victory though, the 44-year-old would not confidently say his side will be lifting the trophy at Twickenham on Saturday - and for good reason.
Exeter Chiefs have already beaten Saints in the Prem Rugby Cup semi-final this season, before eventually losing out in the final to Leicester Tigers.
The club have proven to be "a handful" to Dowson's side and he remains wary of the strengths of his opposition.
"This group is incredibly physical," he said of the Chiefs' squad.
"A very dangerous group. They've got outrageous athletes in Paul Brown-Bampoe and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso."
While Dowson cannot guarantee his side another title, he has every intention of taking a team that will be competitive.
And entertaining too.
"We can't sit around and go 'we need to sell more tickets, we need more people to watch on TV' and then not make it an entertainment sport," Dowson said.
"Because if we kick and clap, then who wants to watch that?"
There will be live text commentary of the Prem final between Northampton Saints and Exeter Chiefs on the BBC Sport website on Saturday, 20 June as well as radio coverage from BBC Radio Northampton starting at 10:00 BST on BBC Sounds.