Harlequins director of rugby Conor O’Shea claimed his side’s season has turned a corner for the better despite defeat to Northampton Saints on Saturday.

In front of a sell-out 82,000 crowd at Twickenham stadium, Quins went down 25-30 to the leaders of the Aviva Premiership.

George Lowe, Jack Clifford and Sam Twomey bagged the Quins tries, and Tim Swiel kicked the extras.

O’Shea said: “There is a huge amount of frustration as we didn’t get the breaks. There are loads we have to work on but very little went our way.”

He added: “But if we play like that we will beat a lot of sides. I’m happier with that performance as it’s a step forward and I believe we’ve turned a corner.

“We’ve a long road ahead though to get back up the Premiership table.”

Quins, eighth in the standings, will look to make the most of their new direction when they go to winless London Welsh on Sunday.

Chris Robshaw is set to miss the trip to Kassam stadium with a shoulder injury, but he should return for the visit to the Stoop of Leicester Tigers on January 10.