Leicester Tigers 40 Exeter Chiefs 22
There was a time when entering a tiger’s den came with a warning of real threat. Leicester were the dominant force in English rugby, regularly hunting down their prey with ruthless efficiency. Many were still not emerging intact; They continued to devour their enemies in this way.
Like all things good, it doesn’t always last forever and over the years other rugby behemoths have arrived on the Premiership plains, including new cubs Exeter Chiefs. While the Tigers were in decline, the Chiefs under Rob Baxter thrived in their new wilderness, capturing two top-flight titles as well as their first European title.
Just as the Tigers have been forced to rebuild, so have the Devonians of late. The team, which surprised many people this season with its new and young-looking squad, showed impressive performances. When it came to the biggest show of the season, Baxter’s young players suffered an untimely bout of stage fright and missed out on grabbing one of the three remaining play-off spots.
The Tigers, on the other hand, used the last break of the season to show their best performance. Australian coach Dan MacKeller was right to wax poetic in closing: “It was a nice performance. I think today we’ve seen a lot of transfers of what we’ve been working on for a long time. We weren’t perfect, we made some mistakes but I thought that’s what we wanted to play attacking rugby.
“We created a lot of opportunities, but the circumstances also allowed for that. With 22,000 people here supporting the kids, I’m really happy that we can send them away knowing we’re going in the right direction.”
Indeed, the Tigers proved they can move up once again with a display that bodes well for next season when they will once again be the pride of the Premier League. The home side overcame an early try from Exeter’s man of the moment, Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, to take a 20-10 lead at half-time.
Ollie Hassell-Collins and Jack van Poortvliet crossed to turn the scores, while Handre Pollard weighed in with the extras from his trusty right shoe. Untimely yellow cards to Olly Woodburn and Feyi-Waboso just before the break did little to help Chiefs; The Tigers went ahead with scores from the impressive Tommy Reffell and former England international Mike Brown before falling further behind after half-time.
This was nothing more than the home side deserved for their efforts. They were dominant from start to finish, producing a brand of rugby that was not only easy on the eye but, more importantly, effective in all departments. Even the late red card of the outgoing Jasper Wiese could not stop his hopes. The South African was sent off for taking down his opposite number, Ross Vintcent, first in a tackle. It may have been an unnecessary action, but it still received a standing ovation from the locals.
“I wouldn’t tarnish his career with the Tigers over something like that,” MacKellar added.
Although Chiefs responded with late tries from both Dan Frost and Vintcent, most of the significant damage had already been done. Indeed, it was the Tigers who finished with a flourish as substitute Kieran Wilkinson kicked two late penalties; one of which ended the proceedings with a yellow for Exeter’s Harvey Skinner.
It’s time for both sides to take a breather, to recharge the batteries, then once again they’re both on the prowl in the Premiership. More will be being prepared for both parties.
Match details
Scoring order: Feyi-Waboso Try (0-5), Slade Con (0-7), Pollard Penalty (3-7), Hassell-Collins Try (8-7), Pollard Conversion (10-7), van Poortvliet Try (15- ) 7), Pollard Conversion (17-7), Pollard Penalty (20-7), Slade Penalty (20-10), Reffell Try (25-10), Pollard Con (27-10), Brown Try (32-10 ), Pollard Con (34-10), Frost Try (34-15), Vintcent Try (34-20), Slade Con (34-22), Wilkinson (37-21), Wilkinson (40-22)
Leicester Tigers: F Commissioner; M Brown, M Scott, D Kelly (S Kata 54), O Hassell-Collins; H Pollard (K Wilkinson 55), J van Poortvliet (T Whiteley 62); F van Wyk (J Cronin 55), J Montoya (c, Clare 59), D Cole (J Heyes 47); G Martin (F Carnduff 69), H Wells; H Liebenberg, T Reffell (O Cracknell 58), J Wiese.
Red card: Wiese
Exeter Chiefs: D. John; I Feyi-Waboso, H Slade, J Hawkins, O Woodburn; H Skinner, T Cairns (N Armstrong 54); S Sio (B Keast 49), M Norey (D Frost 49), M Street (E Painter 49); J Dunne (C Tshiunza 47), D Jenkins (c); E Roots, J Vermeulen, G Fisilau. Replacement (not used): W Haydon-Wood
Yellow Cards: Woodburn, Feyi-Waboso, Skinner
Judge: K Dickson
Participation: 22,258