Leicester to face old hands in PREM Cup final

Leicester’s hopes of a first PREM Rugby Cup title remain alive after they beat an under-strength Bath 46-21 at Mattioli Woods Welford Road.

The Tigers will now host Exeter Chiefs in next Sunday’s final, with the Devon outfit seeing off Northampton Saints 31-14 in the first of the semi-finals at Sandy Park.

It’s Exeter third final appearance in the last four years, having won it in 2023, while Leicester will be hoping to go one better than in 2024, when they lost 23-13 to Gloucester in the final at Kingsholm.

Chiefs, who finished runners-up to Bath last year, scored through Josh Hodge with just two minutes gone and dominated Northampton thereafter for the most part in dank conditions.

Tom Litchfield’s converted try quickly brought Saints back on level terms. But Henry Slade then kicked a penalty and converted Zack Wimbush’s try to make it 17-7 to the Chiefs at the break.

Greg Filisau went over from close range at the start of the second half, before Cameron Ridl produced the moment of the match with a surging run down the left and a brilliant offload to put Hodge away for his second try.

Saints scored a consolation at the death through captain Charlie Ulcoq, which Tony Belleau again converted.

Leicester, meanwhile, were too strong for reigning champions Bath, who didn’t include a single regular league starter in their XV.

Tom Threlfall celebrated his late call-up to the team with a try after just two minutes. But Bath hit back when in-form flanker Ethan Staddon galloped away for a try.

After that, though, it was all Leicester, who bossed the tight exchanges and the breakdown and had Billy Searle purring at fly-half. Searle’s show-and-go solo try put Tigers back in front before Tommy Reffell scored the first of his two tries to send Tigers into a 17-7 lead.

Orlando Bailey made Bath’s task even harder when he scored against his former club within a minute of the restart before the superb Reffell touched down at the back of an unstoppable driving maul.

Kepu Tuipulotu’s introduction gave Bath a noticeable lift and the dynamic hooker burrowed after a long period of pressure with 15 minutes to go to give the visitors a glimmer of hope.

But Leicester found an immediate response through young back-rower Harry Palmer and there was no way back after that for Bath, who conceded two more tries in quick succession when Player of the Match Joaquin Moro charged over to cap a fine game and Ollie Hassel-Collins crossed in the same corner.

Arguably the pick of the tries was saved until last, though, Bath prop Ioan Emanuel doing a passable impression of his countryman Rhys Carre by changing 30 metres upfield with a sensational burst of pace. Emanuel had too much ground to go all the way himself, but delivered a try-scoring pass for fellow Wales U20 international Alex Ridgway as well-beaten Bath had the final say.