1
Leaders Leicester leave it late to go 10 for 10 in 2021
Gallagher Premiership leaders Leicester preserved their unbeaten league record after claiming a dramatic 28-26 victory over Bristol at Ashton Gate.
ADVERTISEMENT
Substitute Guy Porter’s try four minutes into added time made it a perfect 10 out of 10 Premiership wins for Leicester this season.
Bristol looked to have dashed hopes of another Leicester triumph but Tigers skipper Ellis Genge was not to be denied victory over his hometown club prior to joining them next summer.
It was often a frustrating afternoon for Genge, who was involved in a second-half skirmish with Bristol prop and his England front-row colleague Kyle Sinckler.
Bristol were the last team to defeat Leicester in a Premiership game, claiming an away success almost seven months ago, and they nearly repeated that feat through tries from number eight Fitz Harding and wing Ioan Lloyd, while fly-half Callum Sheedy kicked 16 points.
Porter, wing Nemani Nadolo and hooker Julian Montoya touched down for the Tigers, with fly-half George Ford adding three penalties and two conversions as Leicester shaded a thriller.
Fijian star Semi Radradra made his first start of the season after being sidelined by a knee injury suffered during the Tokyo Olympics while Lloyd, centre Sam Bedlow and flanker Sam Jeffries were also among seven changes from Bristol’s last outing three weeks ago.
ADVERTISEMENT
Genge, meanwhile, led a Leicester team boosted by his England colleague Freddie Steward’s return at full-back, with Matias Moroni recalled alongside Dan Kelly in midfield.
Leicester made a bright start, assisted by Bristol conceding two penalties in quick succession, with Genge prominent in loose exchanges but the home team’s defence held firm.
Ford kicked the Tigers into a 15th-minute lead after Bristol conceded a scrum penalty, yet there was precious little to choose between the sides as they sparred for early supremacy.
ADVERTISEMENT
Bristol breached Leicester’s defence midway through the first half when Radradra claimed a high ball from Ben Youngs and surged clear to touch down but the referee ruled it out for a knock-on by Radradra after consulting with television match official Luke Pearce.
Bristol only had to wait another two minutes for an opening try, though, following a superb break by scrum-half Harry Randall and despite Lloyd being tackled short of the line, Harding crashed over and Sheedy added the conversion.
It lifted Bristol’s collective effort and Sheedy extended their advantage by kicking a penalty following a Leicester lineout infringement.
Leicester continued to concede penalties and another Sheedy three-pointer opened up a 13-3 advantage before Tigers hit back two minutes before the break.
And the rest of the family wanted to watch Home Alone 3 ?
? Bristol 13-10 Leicester ? HT pic.twitter.com/mPwXL2LVmo
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) December 26, 2021
Good build-up play from Moroni created an opportunity and Nadolo applied a quality finish, gathering his own kick inside Bristol’s 22 and claiming the try that Ford converted.
Sheedy and Ford exchanged penalties early in the second period, then Bristol struck with a second try after Radradra sent Lloyd over, and Sheedy converted, yet back came Leicester as Ford added the extras to Montoya’s touchdown with 23 minutes left.
Ford landed an equalising penalty to set up a tense final quarter but Sheedy missed two kicks in six minutes before finding his range again after Leicester substitute Jasper Wiese was yellow-carded for a late challenge on the Bristol number 10.
It appeared to have proved costly from Leicester’s viewpoint as Bristol were heading for an outstanding victory only for Porter to deny them in the final seconds.
Comments on RugbyPass
“But with an exceptional pass accuracy rating “ Which apart from Roigard is not a feature of any of the other 9s in NZ. Kind of basic for a Black 9 dont.you. think? Yet we keep seeing FC and TJ being rated ahead of him? Weird if it’s seen as vital to get our backline beating in your face defences.
1 Go to commentsThanks BeeMc! Looks like many teams need extra time to settle from the quadrennial northern migration. I think generally the quality of the Rugby has held up. Fiji has been fantastic and fun to watch
13 Go to commentsLets compare apples with apples. Lyon sent weak team the week before, but nobody raised an eyebrow. Give the South African teams a few years to build their depth, then you will be moaning that the teams are too strong.
41 Go to commentsDid footballs agents also perform the scout role at some time? I’m surprised more high profile players haven’t taken up the occupation, great way to remain in the game and use all that experience without really requiring a lot of specific expertise?
1 Go to commentsSuper rugby is struggling but that has little to do with sabbaticals. 1. Too many teams from Aust and NZ - should be 3 and 4 respectively, add in 2 from Japan, 1 possibly 2 from Argentina. 2. Inconsistent and poor refereeing, admittedly not restricted to Super rugby. Only one team was reffed at the breakdown in Reds v H’Landers match. Scrum penalty awarded in Canes v Drua when No 8 had the ball in the open with little defence nearby - ideal opportunity to play advantage. Coming back to Reds match - same scrum situation but ref played advantage - Landers made 10 yards and were penalised at the breakdown when the ref should have returned to scrum penalty. 3. Marketing is weak and losing ground to AFL and NRL. Playing 2 days compared with 4. 4. Scheduling is unattractive to family attendance. Have any franchises heard of Sundays 2pm?
11 Go to commentsAbsolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
9 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
11 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
4 Go to comments“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
22 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
4 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
9 Go to commentsWell that’s the contracts for RG and Jordie bought and paid for. Now, what are the chances we can persuade Antoine to hop over with all the extra dosh we’ll have from living at the Aviva & Croke next season…??? 🤑🤑🤑
35 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
35 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
17 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
4 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to commentsWhat a player! Not long until he’s in the England side, surely?
5 Go to comments