Heineken Cup: Tigers On Top

Two-time champions Leicester Tigers ended Leinster’s Heineken Cup dreams for another year on Saturday, earning a comprehensive 29-13 quarter-final victory over the province at Lansdowne Road.

HEINEKEN CUP Quarter-final: Saturday, April 2
Leinster 13 Leicester Tigers 29, Lansdowne Road
Scorers: Leinster: Try: Shane Horgan; Con: David Holwell; Pens: Holwell 2
Leicester: Tries: Ollie Smith, Daryl Gibson; Cons: Andy Goode 2; Pens: Goode 4; Drop gl: Goode

John Wells’ towering Tigers will face Toulouse in the semi-finals later this month, while Leinster must rue the ending of a seven-game unbeaten run at the home of Irish rugby.

Apart from the sniping runs of Ireland captain Brian O’Driscoll and the steadying boot of New Zealander David Holwell – who kicked eight points – Leinster were off-the-boil throughout.

Leicester centres Ollie Smith and Daryl Gibson grabbed a try apiece while fly-half Andy Goode showed the England selectors a clean pair of heels with a nonchalant 19-point display.

Incredibly the Tigers’ win was a first away quarter-final win fo an English side in the competition. They had Leinster’s scrum creaking from the early stages, and Goode kicked the visitors into a 12th-minute lead.

Camped in their own half for much of the first half, Leinster, nonetheless, levelled things up six minutes later through Holwell.

Goode notched his second penalty before Smith dummied Felipe Contepomi and raced over for the opening try on 38 minutes.

The game was gradually slipping from Leinster’s hands – Goode converted and tagged on a third penalty for a 16-3 interval lead, with Leinster’s young back row Ciaran Potts sin-binned for a high tackle on the Tigers number 10.

If Goode was putting the points on the scoreboard, it was his forwards – with retiring duo Martin Johnson and Neil Back to the fore – who were securing Leicester’s path through to a fourth semi-final since 1996/97.

Holwell’s second penalty on 56 minutes looked to have got the province – roared on by a capacity and ERC record crowd – back into it, but a restart take from man-of-the-mtach Lewis Moody soon set up the visitors’ second try.

Former All-Black Gibson had enough pace to outdo the Leinster rearguard for the right corner. Goode continued his excellent kicking form, drilling over the conversion and adding an instinctive drop goal with ten minutes remaining.

Horgan’s try – scored despite the besk efforts of the recovering Back – raised Leinster cheers, but there was little discomfort for the triumphant Tigers.

LEINSTER:

(15) Girvan Dempsey
(14) Shane Horgan
(13) Brian O’Driscoll
(12) Felipe Contepomi
(11) Denis Hickie
(10) David Holwell
(9) Guy Easterby
(1) Reggie Corrigan (Capt)

(2) Shane Byrne
(3) Ricky Nebbett
(4) Malcolm O’Kelly
(5) Leo Cullen
(6) Ciaran Potts
(7) Keith Gleeson
(8) Eric Miller

Replacements used: Victor Costello for Potts (50 mins), Gordon D’Arcy for Contepomi (53), Shane Jennings for Gleeson (59). Not used: Emmett Byrne, David Blaney, Des Dillon, Brian O’Meara.

Leicester Tigers: Sam Vesty; Geordan Murphy, Ollie Smith, Daryl Gibson, Leon Lloyd; Andy Goode, Harry Ellis; Graham Rowntree, George Chuter, Darren Morris, Martin Johnson (Capt), Louis Deacon, Lewis Moody, Neil Back, Martin Corry.
Replacements used: Scott Bemand for Ellis (34 mins-ht), Austin Healey for Vesty (78). Not used: James Buckland, John Rawson, Will Johnson, Henry Tuilagi, Alesana Tuilagi.

Sin-bin: Ciaran Potts (Leinster) (41 (first half)-50 mins)
HT: Leinster 3 Leicester 16; Attendance: 48,500
Referee: Joel Jutge (France)