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Report | Tigers win derby semi-final

Figure image

Leicester Tigers booked a place in the Gallagher Premiership Final with a 27-14 victory over Northampton Saints on Saturday.

In the 249th East Midlands derby, played in front of a semi-final club record crowd of more than 22,000 at Mattioli Woods Welford Road, Tigers made progress and will meet Saracens in the season’s climax at Twickenham next Saturday.

The teams were locked at 6-6 after a tense first half before Saints went in front grabbed the first try of the afternoon after the restart through Tommy Freeman.

George Ford engineered a superb try in reply and then provided the scoring pass for Freddie Steward as Tigers led 21-14.

There was still little breathing room, though Ford’s late snapshot drop goal pushed the lead finally into double figures and the fly-half, in his last appearance at the stadium as a Tigers player, added a final kick to make sure against a Saints team who arrived with six bonus-point wins in their previous seven games to secure fourth place in the table.

The two great rivals were meeting in the semi-finals for a third time, following previous meetings in 2011 and 2014 when both went in favour of the home team, first at Tigers then at Saints.

Tigers kicked off in incredible noise from a packed house but had to make a change in the opening three minutes when Dan Kelly pulled up in his first game since April. Freddie Burns was sent on from the bench as Steve Borthwick reshuffled the backline in Tigers’ first semi-final appearance since 2017, and a first at home since the team’s last title win in 2013.

The first penalty went against Tigers in contact near halfway and Dan Biggar kicked play towards the right corner but Harry Wells led the defensive effort as the home pack wrapped up ball.

Referee Matthew Carley, who was in charge of last year’s Final, brought the two captains together for a word with barely five minutes played after awarding a penalty to Saints and Biggar guided the kick over from 45 metres for the opening points.

An attack from deep threatened more for Saints but Freeman’s chip and chase ended with a knock-on inside the Tigers 22 as Ford made the tackle.

Full-back Freeman was back in his own territory to field a kick and, as the visitors broke again, Courtnall Skosan hacked ahead and Alex Mitchell picked up to score. The referee had to check, though, and came back for a knock-on as the South African wing reached for the bouncing ball.

The same duo combined for another chance almost immediately but this time Skosan was unable to hold on to the pass in space on the left wing.

Tigers were still having to defend and Saints were playing with an advantage when Matías Moroni stopped Matt Proctor near the touchline.

Play came back for the penalty which Biggar planted into touch on their left, 20 metres from the tryline. A free-kick at the set-piece kept play in that area but Tommy Reffell stepped in to intercept loose ball from the base of the Saints scrum and Potter kicked down the left to relieve the pressure.

When an attacking scrum followed wide on the left, Ellis Genge and Jasper Wiese hit the gainline in possession and then Saints lock Alex Coles whipped a pass over the head of his support and into touch just in front of his own tryline.

Quick exchange at the lineout from Hanro Liebenberg’s catch almost reached the tryline but, when the defence responded, Dan Cole picked up and drove on, bringing a whistle from the referee at the next breakdown and a decision in Tigers’ favour. Ford took the kick to level the scores on 22 minutes.

The Tigers defence got through some strong work as Saints built some quick phases of possession and, when they were forced back, Biggar went for a drop-goal but put it just wide.

As play restarted, Potter was upended as he contested with proctor in the air but, after checking replays, the referee was content to restart with a Saints scrum.

Rory Hutchinson then found a gap from the set-piece but when he went to the left, Skosan was unable to hang on.

Potter showed his skill and bravery again to win high ball and launch a period of Tigers attacks, with Ford’s chip forcing Freeman to gather behind his own line under pressure from Moroni.

The five-metre scrum yielded a penalty in favour of the Tigers, and Ford notched the points to put his team in front on 33 minutes.

Another whistle followed as Mitchell’s skied kick put his forwards offside in front of the ball, and Wiese almost found a way through as he latched on to ball from Ben Youngs, but Saints recovered to answer in defence.

Youngs then had to react smartly to a ball chipped in behind the Tigers defence, reaching it just before Skosan in the corner, though it did mean a scrum restart for the visitors with just 30 seconds remaining in the half. Those seconds had gone by the time referee Carley reset the scrum and both sets of supporters got behind their team for one last effort.

Coles was held up over the tryline, but the referee came back to check a tackle from Porter which was ruled high but mitigation came as the attacking player was falling and that meant yellow not red when Carley went to his pocket.

After Biggar kicked the points to make it level at 6-6 at the break, the Welsh fly-half set the ball rolling again in the second half with Tigers down to 14 men.

With the wind swirling, both teams had to feel their way back into the game before charges from Harry Wells, Liebenberg and Wiese got the home crowd going again, but Saints responded with a dangerous break of their own until Sam Matavesi cut back into traffic with two colleagues pointing into space on his left.

Biggar pushed a penalty into the Tigers 22 on the left and it brought the breakthrough try.

Saints were stopped initially by Liebenberg with a tackle on Api Ratuniyarawa virtually on the tryline but the visitors retained ball until Freeman found space on the right to score.

Biggar missed the conversion with his side 11-6 in front and then left the field, replaced by James Grayson as the two packs prepared for a scrum following a Steward break on the right touchline.

Porter returned from the sin bin and Jack van Poortvliet replaced Youngs as Tigers built ground in attack and it brought a solo score for Ford, spotting space and racing through it to score before adding the conversion for a 13-11 lead.

Porter protected it with a fantastic tackle as Skosan went for the left corner, but Saints were playing with a penalty advantage. Grayson, though, missed the target with a kick which could have given them the lead again.

The fly-half was quickly back on the tee from a scrum penalty and this time added the points for a 14-13 advantage.

The wind was not doing the kickers any favours, or centre Hutchinson when he spilled a Ford clearance midway inside his own half. A scrum penalty followed and Ford thumped the kick through from 35 metres to make it 16-14 approaching the final quarter of an hour.

When Wiese was stopped by a high tackle from Oisin Heffernan from the restart, the referee checked replays before showing the yellow card to the prop.

Potter’s kickchase put Proctor in difficulties as Tigers counter-rucked but, after initially losing the ball, the whistle went in their favour on the floor. Ford’s kick, though, this time hit the post.

Joe Heyes, on for his 100th first-team appearance, forced a handling error which gave front-row colleagues Montoya and Genge the impetus to carry keenly as Saints were marched back towards their own line. When ball came out from the forwards, Ford’s zipped pass put Steward in to score in the right-hand corner.

Ford’s conversion drifted just wide with seven points between the teams and just a few minutes left on the clock.

A knock-on gave Tigers a scrum 25 metres out, with replacements Nemani Nadolo and George Martin taking play on until Ford saw his chance and clipped a drop goal over the bar. The referee had to check but the replays confirmed the strike had cleared the woodwork and put Tigers 10 in front.

They almost added to it as Potter picked up loose ball before being chased down, then Nadolo and Wiese attacked the tryline until Saints forced ball loose.

But the resulting scrum was greeted with a big push and a huge cheer as the referee signalled in Tigers’ favour and as the clock ticked into the final minute Ford made the kick to take his personal tally beyond 20 points and seal the win.

Match Details

HT ScoreHalf Time Score

LEI 6-6 NOR

FT ScoreFull Time Score

LEI 27-14 NOR

Attendance

Not available

Referee

Matthew Carley

Leicester Tigers
Leicester Tigers
27

Full Time

Northampton Saints
Northampton Saints
14
Leicester Tigers
P
P
T
C
P
T
D
P
KOHTFT
Northampton Saints
P
P
T
P

Match Stats

Leicester Tigers
Northampton Saints
Possession
53%
47%
Territory
55%
45%
Penalties Conceded
10
12
Yellow Cards
1
1
Red Cards
0
0
Tackles Won
119/138 86%
142/170 84%
Scrums Won
7/8 88%
8/9 89%
Lineouts Won
10/12 83%
9/9 100%

Player Stats

Leicester Tigers
Northampton Saints
Leicester Tigers
TCDP
15Freddie Steward1T
14Harry Potter
13Matias Moroni
12Dan Kelly
11Guy Porter
10George Ford1T1C1D4P
9Ben Youngs
1Ellis Genge
2Julian Montoya
3Dan Cole
4Harry Wells
5Calum Green
6Hanro Liebenberg
7Tommy Reffell
8Jasper Wiese
16Charlie Clare
17Nephi Leatigaga
18Joe Heyes
19Ollie Chessum
20George Martin
21Jack van Poortvliet
22Freddie Burns
23Nemani Nadolo

Commentary

IN THE FINAL

Tigers win 27-14 with 22 points from George Ford including a try, and one try from Freddie Steward in front of a 22,000 crowd.

Ford pen, 27-14

Ford with a drop goal - it's just high enough, and it's a 24-14 lead on 77mins.

69

Ford's conversion drifts just wide but Tigers are 21-14 in front

Freddie Steward is in at the corner after the front row carry and Ford zips a pass out wide. 21-14 on 69mins.

67

Ford has another penalty, but it is out off the post. Still 16-14.

Saints prop Oisin Heffernan sin-binned for hiugh tackle on Wiese with 14mins remaining.

Scrum penalty to Tigers, Ford thumps it through the posts for a 16-14 lead on 64mins.

Penalty from Grayson puts Saints 14-13 ahead on 59mins.

56

Replacement fly-half James Grayson misses penalty, Tigers still 13-11 in front.

Ford back on his feet to add the extras, Tigers lead 13-11 on 54mins.

Sensational George Ford, finding space in the defensive line to race in under the posts. 11-11 on 53mins

49

Biggar is off target with the conversion from Freeman try so it's 6-11 on 49mins.

Tommy Freeman scores for Saints to put them 11-6 in front with conversion to come...

41

Teams are back out, 6-6. Here we go.

ALL SQUARE AT HALF-TIME 6-6.

Biggar takes the penalty in front of the posts to make it 6-6.

Porter is yellow-carded for a high tackle in the last play of the half.

Penalty in front of the posts and Ford makes it 6-3 on 33mins.

26

Determined defence from Tigers and Biggar falls into the pock for a drop-goal attempt but is just wide of the right-hand post. Still 3-3.

Ford penalty makes it 3-3 on 22min

11

Mitchell and Skosan break from a Tigers scrum but ball is spilled on the left wing and the home side escape.

10

Alex Mitchell is under the posts but replays consulted and referee sees the kncok-on by Skosan in the scoring pass. Let off for Tigers.

Penalty from 45m, Biggar puts Saints into the lead on 7mins. 0-3

3

An early change as Freddie Burns is summoned from the bench to replace Dan Kelly.

Saints penalty into the right-hand corner but defence keeps them out.

It’s time for kick-off, with George Ford to get the game started. Tigers are playing right to left as we look from the dugouts. It is absolutely deafening in here. HERE WE GO!

0

TODAY’S OPPOSITION ​

Northampton: 15 Tommy Freeman, 14 Matt Proctor, 13 Fraser Dingwall, 12 Rory Hutchinson, 11 Courtnall Skosan, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Alex Mitchell; 1 Emmanuel Iyogun, 2 Sam Matavesi, 3 Ehren Painter, 4 Alex Coles, 5 Api Ratuniyarawa, 6 Courtney Lawes, 7 Lewis Ludlam (c), 8 Juarno Augustus

Replacements: 16 Mike Haywood, 17 Alex Waller, 18 Oisín Heffernan, 19 David Ribbans, 20 Aaron Hinkley, 21 Tom James, 22 James Grayson, 23 Piers Francis

0

HOW TIGERS LINE-UP

STARTING XV

15 Freddie Steward [54], 14 Harry Potter [39], 13 Matías Moroni [34], 12 Dan Kelly [42], 11 Guy Porter [43], 10 George Ford [127], 9 Ben Youngs [280]; 1 Ellis Genge (c) [109], 2 Julián Montoya [25], 3 Dan Cole [288], 4 Harry Wells [154], 5 Calum Green [89], 6 Hanro Liebenberg [57], 7 Tommy Reffell [76], 8 Jasper Wiese [43]

REPLACEMENTS

16 Charlie Clare [50], 17 Nephi Leatigaga [66], 18 Joe Heyes [99], 19 Ollie Chessum [29], 20 George Martin [37], 21 Jack van Poortvliet [47], 22 Freddie Burns [101], 23 Nemani Nadolo [36]

0

MATCH PREVIEW | Leicester Tigers v Northampton Saints

Leicester Tigers and Northampton Saints meet in the 249th East Midlands derby, with the prize of a place in the Gallagher Premiership Final at stake.

Tigers completed the league programme with victory over Wasps to become the first team to top the table through an entire season while Northampton scored 10 tries in a big win over Newcastle Falcons to secure fourth place.

This is a first semi-final appearance for Tigers since 2017, and for Saints since 2019. It is also the first played at Tigers since 2013, the year that the duo met in the Final.

Scrum-half Ben Youngs, one of the survivors of those clashes, said: “It is a squad effort and staff effort all season that gets you to this point and gets you the opportunity for this weekend.

“Big games come down to every little moment and the team prepares to be ready for different things that might happen.”

Julián Montoya and Dan Kelly come into the Tigers line-up, while Joe Heyes is in line for his 100th first-team appearance.

Saints director of rugby Chris Boyd brings Juarno Augustus, Emmanuel Iyogun and Ehren Painter into the forward pack and Courtnall Skosan is named on the wing in a team which arrives with six wins in the last seven league matches.

“We’ve been in knockout mode for the last couple of months but whenever you get to this point in, the stakes go up, the margins for error get smaller, and the space to execute your game plan disappears,” Boyd said.

There is provision for extra-time and a place-kicking competition if the scores are level at 80 minutes.

Referee is Matthew Carley in his fifth Premiership semi-final.

0

WELCOME TO MATCHDAY LIVE!

Wherever you are this afternoon, you can keep up to date with Semi-Final Day with Matchday Live on the Tigers App and website at www.leicestertigers.com. We are LIVE from Mattioli Woods Welford Road as Leicester Tigers host Northampton Saints with a place in the Gallagher Premiership Final for the winners. Kick-off is at 4.30pm.


Opposition Lineup

Starting XV

15
Tommy Freeman
14
Matt Proctor
13
Fraser Dingwall
12
Rory Hutchinson
11
Courtnall Skosan
10
Dan Biggar
9
Alex Mitchell
1
Emmanuel Iyogun
2
Sam Matavesi
3
Ehren Painter
4
Alex Coles
5
Api Ratuniyarawa
6
Courtney Lawes
7
Lewis Ludlam
8
Juarno Augustus

Replacements

16
Mike Haywood
17
Alex Waller
18
Oisin Heffernan
19
David Ribbans
20
Aaron Hinkley
21
Tom James
22
James Grayson
23
Piers Francis

Team News | Tigers side to play Saints

Steve Borthwick has named the Leicester Tigers matchday squad for Saturday’s Gallagher Premiership semi-final against Northampton Saints at Mattioli Woods Welford Road.

Julián Montoya returns to action for the first time in more than a month, named at hooker alongside club captain Ellis Genge and Dan Cole in the front row.

Charlie Clare, Nephi Leatigaga and Joe Heyes are the replacement front-rowers.

If used, the 23-year-old Heyes will make his 100th Leicester Tigers first-team appearance.

Harry Wells and Calum Green start as the second-row pairing, with vice-captain Hanro Liebenberg, Tommy Reffell and Jasper Wiese making up the starting back row.

Ollie Chessum and George Martin are included among the replacements. 

Ben Youngs and George Ford are the starting half-backs for Saturday’s semi-final against Saints.

Dan Kelly is named to make his first appearance since mid-April alongside Matías Moroni in the Leicester midfield. 

In the Tigers back-three, Guy Porter and Harry Potter are the starting wings and Freddie Steward the starting full-back. 

Jack van Poortvliet, Freddie Burns and Nemani Nadolo are the backs on the bench.

STARTING XV
15 Freddie Steward [54]
14 Harry Potter [39]
13 Matías Moroni [34]
12 Dan Kelly [42]
11 Guy Porter [43]
10 George Ford [127]
9 Ben Youngs [280]
1 Ellis Genge (c) [109]
2 Julián Montoya [25]
3 Dan Cole [288]
4 Harry Wells [154]
5 Calum Green [89]
6 Hanro Liebenberg (vc) [57]
7 Tommy Reffell [76]
8 Jasper Wiese [43]

REPLACEMENTS
16 Charlie Clare [50]
17 Nephi Leatigaga [66]
18 Joe Heyes [99]
19 Ollie Chessum [29]
20 George Martin [37]
21 Jack van Poortvliet [47]
22 Freddie Burns [101]
23 Nemani Nadolo [36]

NORTHAMPTON SAINTS XV: 15 Tommy Freeman, 14 Matt Proctor, 13 Fraser Dingwall, 12 Rory Hutchinson, 11 Courtnall Skosan, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Alex Mitchell; 1 Emmanuel Iyogun, 2 Sam Matavesi, 3 Ehren Painter, 4 Alex Coles, 5 Api Ratuniyarawa, 6 Courtney Lawes, 7 Lewis Ludlam (c), 8 Juarno Augustus

Replacements: 16 Mike Haywood, 17 Alex Waller, 18 Oisín Heffernan, 19 David Ribbans, 20 Aaron Hinkley, 21 Tom James, 22 James Grayson, 23 Piers Francis

posteamteam namepldwdlfadifftftatblbpts
1
Leicester Tigers
Leicester TigersLEI242004726452274885211394
4
Northampton Saints
Northampton SaintsNOR2414010764639125998214575
Form Guide
Form
LWWLL
Last Match
Lost to Gloucester Rugby 25-27
Past Meeting
Won 26-17
Form
Last Match
Past Meeting
Form
WWWWL
Last Match
Lost to Bristol Bears 21-52
Past Meeting
Lost 17-26

Matchday Live

Leicester Tigers27
Leicester Tigers
Northampton Saints14
Northampton Saints
Full Time