Furbank's return in Champions Cup final is a gamble, admits Dowson

Investec Champions Cup final: Northampton Saints v Bordeaux-Begles

Venue: Principality Stadium, Cardiff Date: Saturday 24 May Kick-off 14:45 BST

Coverage: Live TV sum connected Welsh connection transmission S4C connected iPlayer, unrecorded power sum connected BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Radio Northampton, pinch unrecorded matter commentary connected nan BBC Sport website

Bringing nine skipper George Furbank consecutive backmost into Northampton's starting line-up for Saturday's Champions Cup last against Bordeaux-Begles is simply a bet admits head of rugby Phil Dowson.

Full-back Furbank has missed overmuch of nan run aft breaking his limb successful nan distant triumph complete nan Bulls astatine nan extremity of past year.

Having had metallic plates inserted successful his arm, nan 28-year-old made an first return successful Saints' quarter-final triumph complete Castres successful April, but suffered a setback successful that lucifer and it was feared his play mightiness beryllium over.

"It's ever a gamble," said Dowson.

"Whenever you bring personification backmost from injury, location is ever a constituent wherever they person sewage to deed somebody, make a screen tackle, aliases spell level out.

"There is ever a consequence there."

However Dowson insists that he saw capable successful Furbank's curtailed quality against Castres to person assurance he tin slot consecutive backmost into Saints' gameplan.

"They were a bully 52 minutes," he said.

"I deliberation what was awesome was his expertise to driblet backmost into our gameplan and still spot abstraction and make bully decisions.

"Nothing rather replicates a game, but his expertise to do that consecutive disconnected nan bat was very impressive."

Curtis Langdon is besides successful nan Saints' starting XV aft concerns that an wounded picked up successful past weekend's triumph complete Saracens whitethorn norm nan hooker out.

Ollie Sleightholme is different to make a comeback connected nan biggest stage, pinch nan helping named connected nan chair and group to make his first quality since suffering an ankle wounded connected England work successful March.

Alex Coles is fresh to return up a domiciled arsenic blindside flanker, while Henry Pollock plays astatine number 8 pinch Ulster-bound South African Juarno Augustus ruled out.

Northampton, who will beryllium captained connected nan transportation by England centre Fraser Dingwall, are seeking to assistance nan trophy for nan 2nd time, having won it 25 years agone against Munster.

Attack coach Sam Vesty says that Northampton, who reached nan semi-final successful summation to lifting nan Premiership title past year, are wished not to beryllium cowed by nan occasion.

"It's astir playing our crippled erstwhile there's a batch of unit successful specified a monolithic final," he told Rugby Union Weekly.

"It's astir still being committed to playing accelerated and making bully decisions that mightiness look risky but backing ourselves to do those things well.

"The astir important point erstwhile thing goes incorrect is to get backmost connected way and that's nan point I deliberation nan boys will beryllium truthful overmuch amended astatine pinch nan experiences they've had complete nan past 12-18 months."

Exeter were nan past English nine to beryllium crowned Champions Cup winners successful 2020 while Saints past reached nan last 9 years earlier, being beaten by Leinster successful Cardiff.

Bordeaux-Begles, contesting their first Champions Cup final, sanction an unchanged starting XV from nan broadside that hit past year's champions Toulouse successful nan past four.

Maxime Lucu and Matthieu Jalibert, some France internationals, are nan half-back partnership, while Damian Penaud and Louis Bielle-Biarrey are portion of a vulnerable backline.

Former London Irish fastener Adam Coleman and Australia world Peter Samu characteristic successful nan pack.

Northampton: Furbank; Freeman, Dingwall (capt), Hutchinson, Ramm; Smith, Mitchell; Iyogun, Langdon, Davison, Mayanavanua, Lockett, Coles, Kemeny, Pollock

Replacements: Wright, Haffar, Millar Mills, Prowse, Scott-Young, James, Litchfield, Sleightholme

Bordeaux-Begles: Buros; Penaud, Depoortere, Moefana, Bielle-Biarrey; Jalibert, Lucu; Poirot, Lamothe, Falatea, Coleman, Cazeaux, Diaby, Petti, Samu

Replacements: Sa, Boniface, Tameifune, Bochaton, Vergnes-Taillefer, Gazzotti, Retiere, Janse van Rensburg

Referee: Nika Amashukeli (Geo)

Assistant referees: Andrew Brace (Ire) and Andrea Piardi (Ita)

TMO: Marius Jonker (SA)