Leicester full-back Telusa Veainu says the Tigers squad were happy to come away from Italy with four points after a frustrating afternoon in Calvisano.
Freddie Steward scored an opening try within 60 seconds of kick-off in the European Challenge Cup clash, but Geordan Murphy’s men were forced to slog out another hour of ‘stop-start’ rugby at the Pata Stadium before their second score.
Veainu described the complications of the game to LTTV following the final whistle.
He said: “There was a lot of stop-start in the game, which was really frustrating.
“Credit to Calvisano for turning up today and giving us a fair battle. We knew it was going to be tough, but we’re just happy with a win, to be honest.
“We’ll take the key learnings out of that and focus on [this] week, against Exeter.”
Tigers sit top of Pool 5 with 18 points from their first four games in the competition, with the 28-year-old adding that that the side must improve if they are to qualify for the European knockout stages.
“We scraped through and we’re happy with our win, but Calvisano did well to frustrate us and make it a dog fight,” he explained.
“In order to go through to the next stages, we need to be a lot tidier and a lot better in every aspect of the game.”
Attentions now turn back to the Gallagher Premiership, and a final home game of 2019 – against Exeter Chiefs – this Saturday, December 21 (3.00pm).
“Exeter is one that we’re looking forward to,” Veainu continued. “It’s going to be a huge week for us.
“It’s all about our preparation and focus on us, and [we’ll] turn up to Welford Road on Saturday and we’ll be ready.”
Match tickets for Saturday’s festive fixture are still available from the Tigers ticket office. Book in person at Welford Road, call 0116 319 8888 (option 2) or book online.
