George Ford has warned of the threat posed by Bristol Bears when they visit Welford Road this weekend.
The West Country outfit currently sit one place and just three points ahead of Leicester in the Gallagher Premiership table following Tigers’ victory at Newcastle a fortnight ago.
“It was crucial that we got that win,” Ford admitted. “We had a good result up there, but we’ve got to make sure it’s an even better result by winning this week.”
“That’s what good teams do; they back it up.”
After using the week without a game to great effect on the training paddock at Oval Park, the England and Tigers fly-half explained the squad are now fully focused on Saturday’s Round 20 clash.
He added: “We had a good week, actually. It gave us another opportunity to get some quality work in, so we had three or four really good sessions working on our game and we came back in [on Monday] ready to go.
“Bristol are such a dangerous team, and we well know that from the game down there [in December].
“They’ve got a clear way of playing, a clear plan, and they must practice it brilliantly because they certainly transfer it onto the field well.”
And with a backline featuring crowd-pleasing Piutau brothers Charles and Siale, plus former Ireland stand-off Ian Madigan, Ford explained that his side will have to dig deep in both defence and attack.
“They’ve got the ability to shift the ball and get it out into space,” he said.
“We’ve got to make sure that we’re good on both sides of the ball…we want to contain them and hopefully take some opportunities ourselves.
“The table is tight from 10th and 11th up to about fifth. We’ve always said we want to look up and hunt the teams above us down.
“Bristol happen to be the team above us, so hopefully we can get a good result this weekend.”
Secure your place for Tigers’ clash with Bristol Bears from £25 for adults or £10 for junior supporters in person at Welford Road, by phone on 0116 319 8888 (option 2), or online using the link below.
