LONDON Irish returned back to the foot of the Premiership table, after they suffered a 35-7 defeat at Northampton Saints.

The home side raced into a 21-0 lead by half-time, thanks to a penalty try and scores from James Craig and Alex Waller.

The Saints continued to dominate after the break, as Lee Dickson set-up Jamie Elliott to go over and then scored himself. Stephen Myler converted all five tries as Northampton led 35-0.

It was left to the Exiles to complete the match scoring, with a consolation try from David Paice, which Shane Geraghty converted.

It gets no easier for Irish next weekend in the Premiership, as they face a visit from high flyers Exeter Chiefs at the Madejski Stadium on Sunday (3pm).