Matt O'Connor admits Leicester Tigers were made to work hard for victory at Worcester Warriors on Saturday but says the day was "all about the win" which secured a place in the Premiership play-offs for a 13th successive season.
Following a try from skipper Tom Youngs from a lineout drive, Tigers led 16-13 at half-time after playing into a stiff wind and fly-half Freddie Burns kept the scoreboard ticking in the second half with a drop goal and three penalties on the way to a sixth away win of the league season.
As a result, Tigers finished fourth in the Aviva Premiership table and now face a semi-final away to league leaders Wasps on May 13.
“We probably managed the game a bit smarter than them at stages,” said head coach O’Connor after victory over the Warriors.
“Worcester were very competitive, very committed and made us work for everything. It was a tough 80 minutes but for us it was all about winning, nothing else mattered today. It was just about getting the result. Thankfully we did enough to do that.
“The scrum went well, the lineout drive was good and we put ourselves into the right areas to win the game."
Looking ahead to the semi-final, O’Connor said: “Wasps are a very talented side and have been front-runners for the majority of the season. But we’ll go there well prepared and we’ll certainly give it everything we’ve got.”
Tickets for the semi-final go on sale from the Tigers ticket office this Wednesday. Click here for more details.
Following a try from skipper Tom Youngs from a lineout drive, Tigers led 16-13 at half-time after playing into a stiff wind and fly-half Freddie Burns kept the scoreboard ticking in the second half with a drop goal and three penalties on the way to a sixth away win of the league season.
As a result, Tigers finished fourth in the Aviva Premiership table and now face a semi-final away to league leaders Wasps on May 13.
“We probably managed the game a bit smarter than them at stages,” said head coach O’Connor after victory over the Warriors.
“Worcester were very competitive, very committed and made us work for everything. It was a tough 80 minutes but for us it was all about winning, nothing else mattered today. It was just about getting the result. Thankfully we did enough to do that.
“The scrum went well, the lineout drive was good and we put ourselves into the right areas to win the game."
Looking ahead to the semi-final, O’Connor said: “Wasps are a very talented side and have been front-runners for the majority of the season. But we’ll go there well prepared and we’ll certainly give it everything we’ve got.”
Tickets for the semi-final go on sale from the Tigers ticket office this Wednesday. Click here for more details.
