Leicester Tigers player ratings vs Sale Sharks | 2025/26 Gallagher PREM

Leicester Tigers player ratings: Tigers kept their season alive with a statement 47-33 victory over Sale Sharks at CorpAcq stadium, running in tries at pace to blow apart Alex Sanderson’s outfit early.

Sale fought back valiantly late in the second half but it was too little too late as Tigers clinically turned pressure into points and exposed defensive gaps all evening. Geoff Parling’s side had too much edge, too much physicality and too much accuracy, with their maul, transition game and broken-field running all causing serious problems for the hosts.

1. Nicky Smith – 6.5
Solid enough before making way early in the second half. Did his basics well around the breakdown and scrum.

2. Jamie Blamire – 8
Continued his excellent try-scoring run with a classic rolling maul finish after 15 minutes. One ugly intercepted pass gifted Sale momentum for their Vermeulen score but carried aggressively and worked hard around the park.

3. Joe Heyes – 8
A proper front five shift. Scrummaged under pressure at times against Opoku-Fordjour but responded well and powered over for Tigers’ bonus-point try before the break. Physical and busy throughout.

4. George Martin – 7
Dominated the airways alongside Chessum. Gave Sale very little clean lineout ball and repeatedly got beyond the gainline.

5. Ollie Chessum – 8
Opened the scoring after just two minutes following brilliant interplay from Hassell-Collins, Radwan, Liebenberg and O’Connor. Excellent in the lineout and carried with menace.

6. Hanro Liebenberg – 7
Subtle but hugely influential, as per usual. His handling before the opener was excellent and he consistently linked play well in heavy traffic.

7. Tommy Reffell – 7
Annoying as ever at the breakdown. Slowed Sale ball effectively and forced a few messy attacking phases.

8. Joaquin Moro – 7.5
Rewarded Tigers’ scrum dominance with a close-range try midway through the first half. Carried hard and tackled with intent before departing after the break.

9. Jack van Poortvliet – 7
Sharp service and some lovely deception around the fringes. His delayed pass to van der Flier was excellent and he constantly threatened tired defenders.

10. James O’Connor – N/A
Some lovely touches in the build-up to the opening try and converted it too before limping off after only 12 minutes.

11. Ollie Hassell-Collins – 8
Outstanding on both sides of the ball. Started the move for the first try with a destructive break and later finished brilliantly in the corner after Radwan’s pass. Even threw in some crunching tackles for good measure.

12. Orlando Bailey – 7.5
Kicked accurately for the most part and distributed smartly after stepping in at fly-half for the injured O’Connor. Played a key role in the Wand try and generally steered Tigers around well after O’Connor’s exit.

13. Will Wand – 8.5
At his absolute finest for his freakish second-half try. Somehow managed to chase Bailey’s kick one-handed and ground it under pressure. Added two breakdown turnovers and constantly threatened with ball in hand.

14. Adam Radwan – 7
Electric early involvement. His sharp running and Bailey crossfield combination helped create the opening try and his pass for Hassell-Collins later on was excellent.

15. Freddie Steward – 7.5
A reminder he is far more than just a high-ball specialist. Ran intelligent support lines, broke through repeatedly and looked dangerous carrying backfield ball.

Replacements – 7
Kata was very good value after replacing O’Connor early, beating three defenders and adding directness to the midfield. Archie van der Flier smashed over for a try after a lovely JVP assist.