Cheika's Leicester era kicks off in fine fashion, Farrell-less Sarries secure win
PREMIERSHIP WRAP: Michael Cheika’s reign as Leicester Tigers head coach began in dramatic winning fashion as his team claimed a 17-14 Premiership victory over Exeter Chiefs at Sandy Park.
Wales international flank Tommy Reffell’s try two minutes into stoppage time ensured an outstanding win on the road.
An error-strewn contest meant the game rarely moved out of second gear, yet second-half tries from No.8 Greg Fisilau and scrumhalf Tom Cairns appeared to give the Chiefs breathing space. Fullback Josh Hodge kicked two conversions but the Tigers would not go quietly.
Flank Hanro Liebenberg’s touchdown gave them hope, while Jamie Shillcock landed a drop goal and conversion, and Ben Volavola added the extras to Reffell’s clincher.
Former Australia and Argentina boss Cheika was appointed this summer, succeeding Dan McKellar and charged with reviving the fortunes of a club that finished eighth in the Premiership last term. The early signs look good as Leicester prevailed despite having their former Exeter centre Solomone Kata sent off eight minutes from time following a high challenge.
Referee Tom Foley dismissed him following video replays after the player had already gone off for a head injury assessment. Exeter had the lion’s share of early possession but they were forced into a sixth-minute change when centre Ben Hammersley went off for an HIA and was replaced by Premiership debutant Paul Brown-Bampoe.
Hammersley’s permanent exit meant Olly Woodburn switching from wing to midfield alongside Joe Hawkins, before Chiefs saw flanker Ethan Roots depart for a HIA with Wales international Christ Tshiunza taking over.
Roots then returned to the action after Hodge hit a post from a long-range penalty attempt, but Exeter then saw scrum-half Niall Armstrong limp off and Cairns entered the fray. Given the punctuating loss of personnel, Exeter showed impressive cohesion to stay on top territorially and Leicester were temporarily reduced to 14 players when centre Izaia Perese was yellow-carded for killing possession.
Exeter looked most likely to break the deadlock but they wasted a golden opportunity three minutes before the interval when England wing Immanuel Feyi-Waboso broke clear, yet he opted not to free an unmarked Woodburn and the chance was lost.
Shillcock then dropped a goal with the final act of a turgid half as the Tigers pinched a 3-0 half-time lead. Leicester made a bright start to the second period, with wing Ollie Hassell-Collins’ break testing Exeter’s defence, but the hosts claimed the game’s opening try after 48 minutes.
Feyi-Waboso received the ball just inside the Leicester 22 and his elusiveness meant he attracted attention from three Leicester defenders, with Fisilau crossing unopposed from close range. Hodge added the conversion and Exeter’s dominant third quarter continued through a concerted attacking spell inside Leicester’s 22.
Powerful ball-carriers like Fisilau and Roots made the hard yards, allowing Cairns a simple finish from barely a metre out, with Hodge’s conversion opening up an 11-point gap. But just when Exeter looked as though they might enjoy a degree of comfort, Leicester hit back when Liebenberg crossed and Shillcock’s conversion meant the game was back in the balance.
Kata’s red card swayed things in Exeter’s favour numerically, yet Leicester were denied a late penalty opportunity when the original decision in their favour was reversed following a high challenge by Tigers replacement Dan Kelly.
There was still time for Leicester after Exeter replacement Will Haydon-Wood was yellow-card for a high tackle and they sealed the deal following a driven lineout as Reffell touched down and Volavola converted.
*Meanwhile, Saracens kicked off their Premiership season in impressive style with a bonus-point victory over Gloucester at Kingsholm.
Without departed skipper Owen Farrell, new recruit Fergus Burke slipped seamlessly into his shoes to guide the visitors to a morale-boosting 35-26 success.
Andy Onyeama-Christie scored two of their tries and Ivan van Zyl and Tobias Elliott the others, with Burke kicking two conversions and two penalties.
Freddie Thomas, Freddie Clarke, Jack Clement and Seb Blake scored tries for Gloucester, with George Barton adding three conversions.
Val Rapava-Ruskin was a late withdrawal for Gloucester having aggravated a knee injury, with Mayco Vivas stepping up from the bench.
Results:
Exeter Chiefs 14-17 Leicester Tigers
The scorers:
For Exeter Chiefs
Tries: Fisilau, Cairns
Cons: Hodge 2
For Leicester Tigers:
Tries: Lieberberg, Reffell
Cons: Shillcock, Volavola
Drop-Goal: Shillcock
Yellow cards: Will Haydon-Wood (Exeter Chiefs, 79), Izaia Perese (Leicester Tigers, 27)
Red card: Solomone Kata (Leicester Tigers, 71)
Teams:
Exeter Chiefs: 15 Josh Hodge 14 Immanuel Feyi-Waboso 13 Ben Hammersley 12 Joe Hawkins 11 Olly Woodburn 10 Harvey Skinner 9 Niall Armstrong 8 Greg Fisilau 7 Ross Vintcent 6 Ethan Roots 5 Richard Capstick 4 Rusi Tuima 3 Ehren Painter 2 Dan Frost 1 Scott Sio
Replacements: 16 Jack Yeandle 17 Will Goodrick-Clarke 18 Josh Iosefa-Scott 19 Jack Dunne 20 Christ Tshiunza 21 Tom Cairns 22 Will Haydon-Wood 23 Paul Brown-Bampoe
Leicester Tigers: 15 Freddie Steward, 14 Josh Bassett, 13 Izaia Perese, 12 Solomone Kata, 11 Ollie Hassell-Collins, 10 Jamie Shillcock, 9 Jack van Poortvliet, 8 Kyle Hatherell, 7 Olly Cracknell, 6 Hanro Liebenberg, 5 Ollie Chessum (captain), 4 Harry Wells, 3 Joe Heyes, 2 Charlie Clare, 1 Nicky Smith
Replacements: 16 Finn Theobald-Thomas, 17 James Cronin, 18 Dan Cole, 19 Côme Joussain, 20 Tommy Reffell, 21 Ben Youngs, 22 Ben Volavola, 23 Dan Kelly
Referee: Tom Foley
Assistant referees: George Selwood, Jonathan Healy
TMO: David Rose
Gloucester 26-35 Saracens
The scorers:
For Gloucester:
Tries: Thomas, Clarke, Clement, Clarke
Cons: Barton 3
For Saracens:
Tries: Segun, Van Zyl, Elliott, Onyeama-Christie 2
Cons: Burke 2
Pens: Burke 2
Teams
Gloucester: 15 George Barton, 14 Christian Wade, 13 Chris Harris, 12 Max Llewellyn, 11 Ollie Thorley, 10 Gareth Anscombe, 9 Tomos Williams, 8 Zach Mercer, 7 Lewis Ludlow, 6 Ruan Ackermann, 5 Matias Alemanno, 4 Freddie Thomas, 3 Afo Fasogbon, 2 Jack Singleton 1 Mayco Vivas
Replacements: 16 Seb Blake, 17 Jamal Ford-Robinson, 18 Kirill Gotovtsev, 19 Freddie Clarke, 20 Jack Clement, 21 Caolan Englefield, 22 Charlie Atkinson, 23 Seb Atkinson
Saracens: 15 Elliot Daly, 14 Tobias Elliott, 13 Alex Lozowski, 12 Nick Tompkins, 11 Rotimi Segun, 10 Fergus Burke, 9 Ivan van Zyl, 8 Tom Willis, 7 Toby Knight, 6 Andy Onyeama-Christie, 5 Hugh Tizard, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Marco Riccioni, 2 Theo Dan, 1 Rhys Carre
Replacements: 16 Jamie George, 17 Sam Crean, 18 Alec Clarey, 19 Harry Wilson, 20 Nick Isiekwe, 21 Ben Earl, 22 Charlie Bracken, 23 Alex Goode
Referee: Craig Maxwell-Keys
Assistant Referees: Andrew Jackson & Peter Allan
TMO: Rowan Kitt
Sources: PA Sports & Rugbypass