TAMING THE TIGERS

  We last played Leicester Tigers in an Aviva semi-Final in 2012. I remember it well. We were reigning champions but we travelled to Welford Road in hope, as if we didn’t really belong at the top table and the air up there was too thin for us. How different was 2016. Once again we are reigning Champions but this time we know our place. We know where we belong. We travel with expectation.  

Being Champions of Europe does strange things. It has made our players several inches taller, a couple of yards faster, a few pounds stronger but above all they know that everything they have achieved is theirs by right. When you are European Champions, you stand at the top of Everest, the climb was hard but having got to the top of the mountain, they are in no hurry to come down.

Leicester Tigers were the last team to beat Saracens this season. They are a team with a pedigree and like Blake’s splendid "Tiger Tiger burning bright” - “what dread hand and what dread feet”. Tigers are not a side to be trifled with. This may have been Saracen’s 7^th successive Premiership Semi-Final – but it was Leicester’s 11^th.

Allianz Park was festooned with flags as the 2 teams took the field in what was a fairly normal Barnet gale. The team were greeted by one of the loudest cheers I have heard in our stadium with special mention for Charlie Hodgson, appearing for the last time in NW4. Sarries had the wind behind them in the first half (so I guess they lost the toss). Farrell’s kick off swirled in the wind. In the resulting melee the ball seemed to have been knocked on but Referee JP Doyle allowed play to continue and Ben Youngs broke free and off-loaded to Manu Tuilagi who put the ball down under the posts. The crowd were stunned. How could he not have seen that? We went to the TMO and Mr Hughes saw a Leicester hand playing the ball on the ground. The try was disallowed, Sarries had a penalty and we breathed again.

Brits had his scrum cap off within 5 minutes so he was up for it! Sarries had a couple of attacking line outs and from the second Ashton broke down the left touchline, found Brits and Kruis who off-loaded to Will Fraser running from deep who picked up and he scored under the posts. An easy conversion for Farrell and the end of the beard for Fraser.

Leicester came straight back with their wings, Veainu & Goneva looking particularly slippery. But Sarries, as ever were happy to play without the ball, won a scrum from a huge hit on Barrow by Itoje, and cleared. Leicester came back again, their pack showing strength with a good lineout drive. Betham looked dangerous and Leicester started throwing the ball around, helped by a couple of invisible forward passes. Wyles intercepted a mis-directed grubber from Owen Williams and there was no stopping him. Wyles put the after burners on, ran 30 metres and scored the second try under the posts: easy conversion, 14-0 and with 20 minutes gone Sarries were cruising. Not only that but Tuilagi, in attempting to catch the American, pulled a hamstring and departed the game.

JP Doyle received a bit cheer from the home crowd when he finally noticed a forward pass. The comedy of errors continued as Goneva and Thacker ran into each other with Thacker departing with a head injury. From the scrum, Billy picked the ball up at the back and found Wiggy. Lovely hands from Goode set Ashton off this time down the right wing. He was inch perfect against the touchline, outran Goneva and Veainu, and scored in the corner. A more challenging kick for Owen this time but he judged the breeze perfectly and added the 2 points.

Leicester seemed helpless in the face of Saracens. When they tried to throw the ball around their passes were intercepted. This time it was Farrell then it was Taylor but Sarries were careless with possession and knocked on. Finally a penalty for off-side. Not an easy kick for Owen but he was definitely on song today and the ball went sailing through the posts to make the score 24-0. Thacker returned to the pitch stitched up. As half time approached Leicester were once again deep in Sarries territory throwing the ball about with gay abandon. Don’t they ever learn? Chris Wyles this time intercepted a casual pass from Youngs, ran the length of the field and scored the 4^th try in the other corner. Goneva did enough to force JP to check the grounding but all was well. Once again Farrell was inch perfect and at half time the lead was 31-0. The teams left the pitch to the tune of “boring, boring Sarries”. You’ve got to love it!

While we watched some very little Rugger Bugs on the pitch, I was idly planning my trip to Twickenham. Little DG pointed out that she hates it when we go in so far ahead at half time. “They always switch off” she said. Surely not this time, after all we’re European Champions now, we don’t do that sort of thing anymore, do we? 5,000 to 1 says we don’t.

The teams re-emerged and the 2^nd half appeared to start just like the first – with a dodgy Leicester try. Williams seemed to fire a pass well forward for Veainu to run on to, he set off for the corner and scored. There was a huge shout of “forward” and some of the Saracens players seemed to stop, so obvious a forward pass did it appear to be. JP went to the TMO and we chatted among ourselves waiting for the inevitable. Even on the replay the pass looked forward but incredibly JP and Graham Hughes decided to allow the try to stand! (Actually I shouldn’t say incredible, not when discussing Mr Hughes!). To make matters worse, Williams kicked an excellent touchline conversion and Tigers were up and running at 31-7.

From the restart Leicester won 2 penalties in quick succession, the second for a high tackle by Maro on Youngs (real Little and Large this one, Youngs’ neck only comes up to Maro’s waist). Again Williams kicked the points and Leicester had racked up 10 points in 5 minutes. The musical chairs at the Leicester hooker continued and Thacker departed again to be replaced by Ghiraldini. The first round of handbags began. JP had a few words and calmed things down. Sarries brought on Jamie George for Brits. Another long Leicester penalty, won by Betham, was missed but an intelligent kick ahead by Thompstone forced Owen to run the ball into touch on his own 5m line. Huge pressure ensued by Leicester and although the line was defended, Will Fraser was yellow carded for preventing a quick tap and go. Another Leicester penalty on 5m was driven from the line out and this time Dom Barrow scored and Williams again converted to bring Leicester back within touching distance at 31-17. Surely it couldn’t happen could it? Odds were more like 5 to 1 now!

Bosch replaced Taylor and Figallo came on for Du Plessis. Sarries finally got into the Leicester 22 following a lovely drive from a line out (after Williams put the ball out on the full) and a penalty ensued for pulling it down. Into the breeze and wide out, Owen’s kick didn’t make it. The ball went loose and Sarries seemed to have scored again but JP had seen a knock on and we went back for the scrum. De Kock replaced Wiggy. Finally Sarries seemed to have woken up and started to assert some pressure. Leicester’s clearance kicks came back with avengeance. Drive after drive was repelled. Fraser returned to the fray. Owen was tackled around the ribs and worryingly went down. We all know Owen doesn’t go down easily. He got back to his feet and was tackled again by Genge, a tad late, in exactly the same place. He went down again and looked to be struggling. My immediate thoughts were “rib fracture”. Bad news if correct. Even so he seemed to be trying to persuade the medics that he was OK before reluctantly limping off the pitch. JP had a look but deemed the penalty to be sufficient. Charlie replaced Farrell (to loud applause for both men) and his first action was to kick the penalty which took Sarries 34-17 ahead, and more importantly stopped the run of unanswered points.

Wyles demonstrated some lovely footwork dealing with a dangerous ball on his try line then dancing clear of Goneva and producing a penalty . Thacker again replaced Ghiraldini (was that the 3^rd or the 4^th change). Leicester were rattled. They conceded a scrum against the head. Instead of clearing the ball from a 22 drop out, Thompstone tried some silly tap restart, appeared to knock it on (not surprisingly no one saw it) and ended up isolated. Charlie kicked the subsequent penalty and Sarries were now 20 points ahead. It seemed that Leicester’s brief revival was over. They were making errors now. The ball went lose and Itoje’s long legs kicked it clear. Ashton was fully 10m behind 3 Leicester defenders but ran between them, reached the ball first, kicked it ahead, picked it up and touched down for his 2^nd, and Sarries’ 5^th, try. Charlie converted and at 44-17 with only 8 minutes left it looked like it was all over. Best of all a new chant rang round Allianz – “Oh Maro Itoje, Oh Maro Itoje”.

As the clock wound down, Charlie kicked another penalty to 5m. A heavy tackle floored Charlie. We held our collective breath as the prospect loomed of Mordt playing fly half at HQ. But Charlie got to his feet, thank the Lord. Another penalty. Tait was forced to carry the ball over. A Sarries’ 5m scrum again. “We want 50” shouted the crowd. All I wanted was the game to be over with no more injuries. Leicester won a penalty. Tap and go – for God’s sake let them, does it matter if they score again, just don’t break Charlie! In the end Leicester knocked on and it was all over.

Ashton was awarded man of the match. Honorable mention also to Wyles, Kruis and of course Itoje. How Eddie Jones could select Yarde over Ashy I really don’t know – just when I thought some sort of sense had returned to England Rugby! Apparently he’s being overlooked for playing in a good side! Beggar’s belief! BT described him as “the best finisher in the Northern Hemisphere!” Ashy must have done something dreadful in a former life. (From a purely selfish point of view I’d rather all our players had the summer off!)

So the Tigers are tamed and the season goes on for one last week where we return to Twickenham to defend our title, this time to face new opponents in the Exeter Chiefs. We’ll go as reigning Premiership Champions, European Champions and rightly as favourites. Exeter are a very good side and will attract the neutral support but Twickenham is now our second home whereas for the Chiefs it will be a new experience and we must be ruthless and do to Chiefs what we did to Bath last year; that way the Double will be done and dusted.

Saracens:

Goode, Ashton, Taylor (Bosch), Barritt, Wyles, Farrell (Hodgson), Wigglesworth (De Kock), M Vunipola (Barrington), Brits (George), du Plessis (Figallo), Itoje, Kruis, Rhodes (Wray), Fraser, Billy Vunipola (Hamilton).

Leicester Tigers

Tait, Veainu, Betham (Bell), Tuilagi (Thompstone), Goneva, Williams, Youngs (Kitto), Ayerza (Genge), Thacker (Ghiraldini), Cole (Mulipola), Barrow, Kitchener (Slater), Fitzgerald (Evans), O’Connor, McCaffrey

Saracens (44)

Tries: Fraser, Wyles (2) Ashton (2); Conv: Farrell (4) Hodgson; Pens: Farrell, Hodgson (2)

Leicester Tigers (17)

Tries: Veainu, Barrow; Conv: Williams; Pen: Williams

Attendance 9,932

Referee: J P Doyle (RFU)