Matt O'Connor believes there is still more improvement to come from Leicester Tigers after a bonus-point win over Newcastle Falcons on Saturday.
With just three points separating the teams in the opening 40 minutes, Tigers claimed the opening try in the last attack of the first half and added three more after the break to retain their hold on fourth place in the Aviva Premiership table with just two games remaining in the league programme.
O’Connor, in charge for the first time at Welford Road after arriving as head coach earlier this month, said: “We had to make sure we brought intensity for the full 80 minutes because we thought it would pay in the back-end of the game.
“We did some really good things, but there is a lot of growth to come in us.
“Newcastle made it difficult in the first half and we helped them a bit by not controlling ball well enough and that gave them a leg up. But the try just before half-time and Ben Youngs’ tackle on Niki Goneva set us up for the win.
“We started the second half with fantastic intensity and made it difficult for them to get out of their half into the wind. We got the result in the end from our performance there. We raised our intensity, we spoke about making sure everything was a little bit quicker and getting them under a bit more pressure, and I thought we could deliver on that.
“I thought we were outstanding then they had the ball, we defended really well, put them under pressure and that suffocated them.
“We had set-piece dominance and got rewarded for that, it was the platform for a couple of tries in the second half.”
Ellis Genge scored two of the tries, with Telusa Veainu adding another and Ben Youngs providing the bonus-point score with a solo run from a tap penalty near halfway as the game entered the last 10 minutes.
“Ben Youngs is world class at that,” added O’Connor. “He has done it his whole career.”
Luke Hamilton was a late withdrawal from the team after suffering an ankle injury in training, but O’Connor confirmed it is nothing serious and he should be available for selection when Tigers return to Premiership action against Sale Sharks on Saturday, April 29.
Tickets for Tigers v Sharks are on sale now at the Welford Road ticket office. Book in person, phone 0116 319 8888 (option 2) or click here to book online.
With just three points separating the teams in the opening 40 minutes, Tigers claimed the opening try in the last attack of the first half and added three more after the break to retain their hold on fourth place in the Aviva Premiership table with just two games remaining in the league programme.
O’Connor, in charge for the first time at Welford Road after arriving as head coach earlier this month, said: “We had to make sure we brought intensity for the full 80 minutes because we thought it would pay in the back-end of the game.
“We did some really good things, but there is a lot of growth to come in us.
“Newcastle made it difficult in the first half and we helped them a bit by not controlling ball well enough and that gave them a leg up. But the try just before half-time and Ben Youngs’ tackle on Niki Goneva set us up for the win.
“We started the second half with fantastic intensity and made it difficult for them to get out of their half into the wind. We got the result in the end from our performance there. We raised our intensity, we spoke about making sure everything was a little bit quicker and getting them under a bit more pressure, and I thought we could deliver on that.
“I thought we were outstanding then they had the ball, we defended really well, put them under pressure and that suffocated them.
“We had set-piece dominance and got rewarded for that, it was the platform for a couple of tries in the second half.”
Ellis Genge scored two of the tries, with Telusa Veainu adding another and Ben Youngs providing the bonus-point score with a solo run from a tap penalty near halfway as the game entered the last 10 minutes.
“Ben Youngs is world class at that,” added O’Connor. “He has done it his whole career.”
Luke Hamilton was a late withdrawal from the team after suffering an ankle injury in training, but O’Connor confirmed it is nothing serious and he should be available for selection when Tigers return to Premiership action against Sale Sharks on Saturday, April 29.
Tickets for Tigers v Sharks are on sale now at the Welford Road ticket office. Book in person, phone 0116 319 8888 (option 2) or click here to book online.
