Match Report: Leicester Tigers 54 – 33 Northampton Saints

Northampton Saints went down to their first loss in the Premiership Rugby Cup this season, as they were defeated 54-33 by an experienced Leicester Tigers side in Round 4. 

A slow start from Saints allowed Tigers to stretch out to an early lead through tries from Emeka Ilione, Will Wand and Hanro Liebenberg. But Saints settled in the second quarter and sent Will Glister and Tom James over in return to keep themselves within reach. 

Two more tries for scrum-half James after the break secured his hat-trick and the bonus point score for Northampton, but while Saints also sent Fyn Brown over the whitewash, second scores for Liebenberg and Wand coupled with a Solomone Kata effort secured Tigers the win.

FIRST HALF:

Tigers pressured Saints from the kick-off and hit first on the scoresheet, pushing their driving maul close twice before it eventually rumbled over the whitewash with Ilione at the base. 

Shillcock’s conversion made it 7-0 and he would soon add another when he converted Wand’s effort out on the left – where the winger slipped through a gap in Saints’ line after more Tigers pressure. 

Saints fended off another Tigers attack on 20 minutes, when a turn of pace from Adam Radwan set Ben Young free for a certain try were it not for the speed and commitment of Tom Seabrook to get back and force the knock-on from the former England scrum-half over the tryline. 

But the home side kept the pressure on and eventually a third score came when Liebenberg rumbled over from close range and Shillcock’s third conversion made it 21-0. 

Saints were yet to fire a shot and got close when scrambled Tigers ball gave them possession in Leicester’s 22, but a loose pass was well read by Ben Volavola to put an end to that effort. 

A string of penalties saw Saints keep the pressure on, with George Makepeace-Cubitt earning them an attacking position in Tigers’ 22 once more. But this time Saints’ attack found themselves held up over the tryline. 

It was third time lucky for the men in Black, Green and Gold, after another period of patient attack from Saints eventually paid dividends and Billy Pasco ran a sweet line to send Glister diving over out wide. 

And Northampton added a second at pace, pressurising again before James Ramm sliced through Tigers’ line and got the offload away to a waiting James to score under the posts. 

Makepeace-Cubitt added the conversion with the half’s final play, sending the teams into the changing rooms with the scoreline at 21-12. 

SECOND HALF:

Saints sandwiched half-time with another James score, this time with Archie Benson cutting a deft line and freeing his hands to send the scrum-half over. 

And while Leicester would stretch their lead through Hatherell from close range, James would grab himself a hat-trick and Saints the bonus point on the hour mark when more pressure from Northampton gave James the chance to snipe over. 

But a pair of quick scores from Tigers – with Liebenberg and Wand both grabbing their second of the afternoon – put the home side 14 points up with 15 minutes left on the clock. 

Saints did claw one back when Brown went rumbling over from close range, but Tigers hit back immediately again and sent a charging Kata over themselves. 

Shillcock’s conversion made it 47-33 in Tigers’ favour and the home side would grab one more, with a sprinting Radwan scoring a breakaway effort for Leicester at the death. 

Northampton head back to cinch Stadium at Franklin’s Gardens next weekend, hosting Coventry Rugby in Round 5 of the Premiership Rugby Cup on Saturday 8 February (kick-off: 2.45pm). 

LINE-UPS:

TIGERS: 15 Shillcock, 14 Radwan, 13 Kelly, 12 Woodward, 11 Wand, 10 Volavola, 9 Youngs (c); 1 Whitcombe, 2 Clare, 3 Cole, 4 Manz, 5 Joussain, 6 Liebenberg, 7 Ilione, 8 Hatherell.
Replacements: 16 Theobald-Thomas, 17 Cronin, 18 Hoyt, 19 Wells, 20 Carnduff, 21 Whiteley, 22 Kata, 23 Pearson.

SAINTS: 15 Ramm, 14 Glister, 13 Pasco, 12 Savala, 11 Seabrook, 10 Makepeace-Cubitt, 9 James; 1 Haffar, 2 Walker, 3 Green, 4 Prowse, 5 Hunter-Hill, 6 Scott-Young (c), 7 Brown, 8 Augustus.
Replacements: 16 Wright, 17 West, 18 Millar Mills, 19 Lockett, 20 Benson, 21 Weimann, 22 Witheat, 23 Garside.