Tuilagi stars in stunning Tigers turnaround

The Tigers trailed by 17 points approaching half-time at Welford Road and effectively had 40 minutes in which to save their season as a defeat by the Cherry and Whites would have effectively scuppered the Midlands club's hopes of a top four finish in the regular season table.

But Tuilagi helped Leicester get going, scoring two tries and creating another, with midfield colleague Peter Betham and full-back Telusa Veainu also crossing before wing Vereniki Goneva's try six minutes from time gave them a bonus-point win, with fly-half Owen Williams kicking 10 points.

"I am delighted with the result, delighted that we got ourselves out of the hole that we put ourselves in," said Leicester director of rugby Richard Cockerill.

The former Leicester and England hooker added: "I was pretty unhappy at half-time, if I am honest. We were good enough to win the game, but some of the things we did in that second 20 minutes were not acceptable.

"We had 40 minutes to save our season, because if we had lost today, we were done. We knew if we got it right, we are a good enough side to claw it back, so credit to the players for doing that.

"It was a great win, and we will take a lot of spirit from the win.

"There were some harsh words said at half-time because I thought they were necessary. If we had lost, the season was done," said Cockerill after a win that kept Leicester in touch with a top three headed by defending champions Saracens.

Gloucester scored three tries in nine first-half minutes through wing Steve McColl, centre Henry Trinder and prop Paddy McAllister.

Greig Laidlaw, the Gloucester captain, converted all three scores and the Scotland skipper also kicked three penalties in a 15-point haul.

But the west country club could not close the game out and Gloucester boss David Humphreys said: "I am hugely proud of the players, but also hugely disappointed for them.

"We played with some real ambition, scored some great tries and defended well, but ultimately we will look back and three of Leicester's tries came from our set-piece.

"If you want to come to Welford Road and win, that is one of the parts of your game that has got to be rock solid," the former Ireland flyhalf added.

"When we sit back and reflect on the game, we will be unbelievably disappointed to have gone in at half-time 27-13 up and not to have closed out the game."

Saturday's other matches saw second-placed Exeter overwhelm Worcester 50-12 as they ran in eight tries at Sandy Park, while bottom-of-the-table London Irish were beaten 30-15 at home to Sale, with England flyhalf Danny Cipriani scoring 20 points.

Fortunately for London Irish, they were left just four points behind second bottom Newcastle after the Falcons lost 25-46 away to Harlequins.

All the Saturday games!

Exeter Chiefs 50-12 Worcester Warriors

Thomas Waldrom and Olly Woodburn both bagged hat-tricks as Exeter Chiefs brought Worcester Warriors' fine recent run to an end with a bonus-point win at Sandy Park.

After an unbeaten March in the Premiership for Dean Ryan's Warriors - the Chiefs proved too strong in an eight-try victory that keeps them in second and looking good for a home semi-final.

Waldrom, James Short and Woodburn all crossed in the first half for Rob Baxter's side - who have lost just once at their home ground since January of last year.

The Warriors fought back before the break as Cooper Vuna and Andy Symons claimed quickfire scores.

But after the interval the hosts turned the screw as Ollie Atkins went over before Waldrom and Woodburn racked up trebles to bring up a half century of points.

The Chiefs have won all seven previous the Premiership encounters against the Warriors and it was the hosts that dominated the opening proceedings.

Despite losing Phil Dollman to injury - Short replacing him - they had built pressure on the Warriors try-line, particularly at scrum time.

A penalty try seemed to be only moments away but in the end prop James Johnston saw yellow on his first start for the Warriors and the hosts ran riot.

First it was Waldrom who drove over from close range for his 11th league try of the season.

Minutes later it was Short with the Chiefs' second, the winger reaching out to ground in the left corner after quick hands from Ian Whitten had released him.

Steenson converted the second of those two tries for a 12-0 lead but with Johnston still in the sin bin the Chiefs were rampant and grabbed a third straight from the kick off.

Jack Nowell made a searing break from his own 22 and, spotting his opposite winger Woodburn in space, sent through a delightful kick that sat up perfectly for the latter to dot down.

It had taken a while for the floodgates to open but now the Chiefs looked set to run riot.

But - with Johnston back on the pitch - the visitors staged a fine fightback before the break.

A quick tap from Francois Hougaard close to the try line saw quick hands from Chris Pennell put Vuna over in the left corner for his sixth try of the season.

Heathcote could not convert but before the break his clever kick down the line drew a fumble from Woodburn and forced Nowell to concede a five-metre scrum.

And from that set-piece Symons - a late call-up following an injury to Ryan Mills - cut a great line off his scrum-half to dive over, Heathcote adding the extras for a remarkable 17-12 half-time scoreline.

Quite how the Chiefs were not further ahead would have perplexed Baxter at the break.

But in the second period - with the wind at their backs - the hosts re-established dominance within a minute - Atkins grounding from close range for the bonus point score.

This time Steenson converted and at 24-12 the Chiefs had some breathing space.

Before the hour mark Waldrom had his second - once again a close-range surge that proved unstoppable.

Steenson could not add the extras but moments later Woodburn scooped up a loose ball and accelerated clear under the posts for their sixth try.

Henry Slade took over the kicking duties and slotted over, setting the stage for Waldrom's third score - a carbon copy of the first two - that takes the No.8's league total this season to 13.

And there was still time late on - with Carl Kirwan in the bin for the Warriors - for Woodburn to complete a hat-trick and rack up the half century.

The scorers:

For Exeter Chiefs:

Tries: Waldrom 3, Short, Woodburn 3, Atkins

Cons: Steenson 2, Slade 3

For Worcester:

Tries: Vuna, Symons

Con: Heathcote

Yellow cards: James Johnston (Worcester Warriors, 17), Jaba Bregvadze (Worcester Warriors, 45), Carl Kirwan (Worcester Warriors, 75)

Teams:

Exeter Chiefs: 15 Phil Dollman, 14 Jack Nowell, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Ian Whitten, 11 Olly Woodburn, 10 Gareth Steenson (captain), 9 Will Chudley, 8 Thomas Waldrom, 7 Julian Salvi, 6 Don Armand, 5 Damian Welch, 4 Ollie Atkins, 3 Moray Low, 2 Luke Cowan-Dickie, 1 Ben Moon.

Replacements: 16 Jack Yeandle, 17 Alec Hepburn, 18 Harry Williams, 19 Mitch Lees, 20 Kai Horstmann, 21 Dave Lewis, 22 Michele Campagnaro, 23 James Short.

Worcester Warriors: 15 Chris Pennell, 14 Bryce Heem, 13 Wynand Olivier, 12 Ryan Mills, 11 Cooper Vuna, 10 Tom Heathcote, 9 Francois Hougaard, 8 Gerrit-Jan van Velze (captain), 7 Sam Betty, 6 Carl Kirwan, 5 Darren Barry, 4 Donncha O'Callaghan, 3 James Johnston, 2 Niall Annett, 1 Val Rapava Ruskin.

Replacements: 16 Jaba Bregvadze, 17 Na'ama Leleimalefaga, 18 Gareth Milasinovich, 19 Dan Sanderson, 20 Matt Cox, 21 Luke Baldwin, 22 Ryan Lamb, 23 Andy Symons.

Referee: Thomas Foley

Assistant referees: Gareth Copsey, Ross Campbell

TMO: Keith Lewis

Harlequins 46-25 Newcastle Falcons

Harlequins kept pace with the top four thanks to their 46-25 victory over the Premiership strugglers Newcastle Falcons.

A Tim Visser double and scores from Jack Clifford, Joe Gray, Joe Marchant and Marland Yarde means Quins are currently five points off fourth-placed Leicester Tigers - with Wasps facing Northampton Saints tomorrow.

Harelquins did suffer a second-half scare at Twickenham Stoop though as Nili Latu's brace and Marcus Watson's try meant Newcastle only trailed 28-25 with less than 20 minutes remaining before Quins pulled away.

Harlequins had won just one of their last five Aviva Premiership games, while Newcastle had lost their previous five.

But the visitors did head into this one having claimed the previous two meetings between the sides and it was the Falcons who started promisingly as their early pressure earned them a third-minute penalty which fly-half Mike Delany duly converted.

Harlequins' response was immediate and convincing though, with tries by winger Visser and flanker Clifford putting them in the ascendancy.

Visser capitalised on a Newcastle error in the sixth minute, intercepting around 40 metres out and running unchallenged to score under the posts.

Newcastle's Delany did make it 7-6 with another penalty from the 40-metre line, but after a spell of Harlequins pressure, Clifford was able to stretch and plant the ball over the line. A second Ben Botica's conversion meant it became 14-6 to Conor O'Shea's men.

There then followed a bitty 20 minutes of play, peppered with stoppages, but shortly before half-time Quins hooker Gray's converted try gave the home side a 21-6 half time lead.

Harlequins began the second half on the front foot, in search of the fourth try that would earn them an all-important bonus point.

And after determined rucking on Newcastle's five-metre line, the ball was released quickly to find spare man Marchant who had created an overload on the left-hand side to score, with Botica converting for 28-6.

A comeback looked unlikely, but Newcastle reduced the deficit just two minutes later when winger Watson went over after good work by replacement Sean Robinson. But Delany failed to convert.

As clouds gathered over the Stoop, a sense of tension seemed to wrack the home crowd as Newcastle got even closer on the scoreboard.

Lock Latu hurled himself over the line from a yard and this time Delany converted to reduce the arrears to just ten points.

And the Tongan forward was at it again on the hour mark, mauling strongly to score a crucial try that was duly converted by Delany, meaning the game was delicately poised at 28-25.

However, the momentum swung again as a pair of Botica penalties in the next seven minutes eased the pressure on Harlequins, putting them more than a full score ahead.

Visser then scored his second try of the match with eight minutes remaining, getting on the end of a grubber to make it 39-25.

And after Delany was showed yellow card for a dangerous tackle in the dying stages, Yarde went over for Quins with the last play of the game: Botica converting to make it 46-25

The scorers:

For Harlequins:

Tries: Yarde, Marchant, Visser 2, Clifford, Gray

Cons: Botica 5

Pens: Botica 2

For Newcastle Falcons:

Tries: Watson, Latu

Cons: Delany 2

Pens: Delany 2

Yellow cards: George Merrick (Harlequins, 59), ean Robinson (Newcastle Falcons, 66)

Teams:

Harlequins: 15 Mike Brown, 14 Marland Yarde, 13 Joe Marchant, 12 Jamie Roberts, 11 Tim Visser, 10 Ben Botica, 9 Danny Care (captain), 8 Nick Easter, 7 Jack Clifford, 6 Chris Robshaw, 5 James Horwill, 4 George Merrick, 3 Will Collier, 2 Joe Gray, 1 Joe Marler.

Replacements: 16 Dave Ward, 17 Mark Lambert, 18 Kyle Sinckler, 19 Sam Twomey, 20 Mat Luamanu, 21 Karl Dickson, 22 Matt Hopper, 23 Ross Chisholm.

Newcastle Falcons: 15 Alex Tait, 14 Marcus Watson, 13 Chris Harris, 12 Adam Powell, 11 Sinoti Sinoti, 10 Mike Delany, 9 Michael Young, 8 Ally Hogg, 7 Will Welch (captain), 6 Nili Latu, 5 Calum Green, 4 Mark Wilson, 3 Taione Vea, 2 George McGuigan, 1 Rob Vickers.

Replacements: 16 Scott Lawson, 17 Alex Rogers, 18 Kensuke Hatakeyama, 19 Sean Robinson, 20 Simon Hammersley, 21 Sonatane Takulua, 22 Craig Willis, 23 Belisario Agulla.

Referee: Matthew Carley

Assistant referees: Andy Watson, Kelvin Stewart

TMO: Rowan Kitt

London Irish 15-30 Sale Sharks

Two late tries saw Sale Sharks streak away from hosts London Irish in the second half to keep their the Premiership top-six aspirations very much alive

Mike Haley's score late in the first half earned Sale a slender half-time advantage, with the Exiles not taking their chances after Sean Maitland's early try - Greig Tonks missing three times from the tee.

Johnny Williams' try did reduce the deficit to just one point after Danny Cipriani had kicked his third penalty of the game, but late tries from TJ Ioane and then Cipriani himself - who notched up 20 points in total - saw Sale to their second win on the bounce.

Cipriani got the game underway and put the visitors ahead with a seventh-minute penalty. The Sharks looked good in the game's opening exchanges and when Irish went off their feet the fly-half made no mistake from the tee.

But Tonks gave the home fans something to cheer about with an immediate reply, with a great scrum from the Exiles forcing the penalty from Sale's front row.

The Sharks stayed in the ascendancy and continued to attack, and could have scored through Cameron Neild who knocked on from Sam Tuitupou's offload.

But it was the hosts who notched up the game's opening score, with a brilliantly worked move that saw scrum-half Scott Steele feed Maitland who went under the posts, with Ofisa Treviranus also involved in the build-up.

Tonks had left his kicking boots at home however, somehow missing the conversion from in front of the posts after slicing a penalty attempt wide two minutes beforehand, so the score stayed at 8-3.

Will Addison's stunning break saw Sale hit back and advance up the pitch, and Cipriani reduced the deficit to two on 26 minutes after Williams was pinged for not rolling away.

Sale were given a huge let off a couple of minutes later, as Irish went over for a score but were adjudged to have thrown a forward pass in the build-up, and then Tonks missed another penalty attempt when the Sharks were offside.

And the Exiles were made to pay by Haley, who scored for the visitors just before half time following an overlap, with Cipriani adding the extras to make it 13-8 at the interval.

A frantic start to the second half saw Neville Edwards make a break, before Irish forced the turnover and chipped the ball back up the pitch, only for Andrew Fenby to knock on.

Sale forced a couple of penalties and Cipriani expertly kicked them to the corner, but phenomenal maul defence from the hosts earned them a turnover.

Irish lacked the continuity in attack that they had in the first half, and continued to absorb all the pressure, with Cipriani eventually stretching the lead after Irish were penalised for not releasing.

But on 65 minutes Williams dived over the whitewash against the run of play, and Tonks ensured there would be a grandstand final 15 minutes with his conversion from the touchline making it a one-point contest.

Peter Stringer looked to set up replacement Tom Brady with a chip through four minutes later, but the winger could not hold on to it and the hosts were awarded the scrum.

But it was Ioane who made the crucial breakthrough for Sale on 72 minutes, diving over the line and placing the ball at the base of the posts.

And after adding another conversion to his tally, Cipriani put the icing on the cake for Sale as he intercepted an errant Irish pass to run in under the posts and make sure of the victory with three minutes remaining.

The scorers:

For London Irish:

Tries: Maitland, Williams

Con: Tonks

Pen: Tonks

For Sale Sharks:

Tries: Haley, Cipriani, Ioane

Cons: Cipriani 3

Pens: Cipriani 3

Yellow card: Neil Briggs (Sale Sharks, 78)

Teams:

London Irish: 15 Sean Maitland, 14 Tom Fowlie, 13 Ciaran Hearn, 12 Johnny Williams, 11 Andrew Fenby, 10 Greig Tonks, 9 Scott Steele, 8 Ofisa Treviranus, 7 Blair Cowan, 6 Luke Narraway (captain), 5 Matt Symons, 4 Jebb Sinclair, 3 Halani Aulika, 2 David Paice, 1 Tom Court.

Replacements: 16 Tom Cruse, 17 Tom Smallbone, 18 Leo Halavatau, 19 Jerry Sexton, 20 Rob McCusker, 21 Brendan McKibbin, 22 Theo Brophy Clews, 23 Fergus Mulchrone.

Sale Sharks: 15 Mike Haley, 14 Will Addison, 13 Sam James, 12 Sam Tuitupou, 11 Nev Edwards, 10 Danny Cipriani, 9 Peter Stringer, 8 Mark Easter, 7 David Seymour (captain), 6 Cameron Neild, 5 Andrei Ostrikov, 4 Bryn Evans, 3 Brian Mujati, 2 Tommy Taylor, 1 Eifion Lewis Roberts.

Replacements: 16 Neil Briggs, 17 Ross Harrison, 18 Vadim Cobilas, 19 Jonathan Mills, 20 Magnus Lund, 21 TJ Ioane, 22 Joe Ford, 23 Tom Brady.

Referee: Craig Maxwell-Keys

Assistant referees: Roger Baileff, Roy Maybank

TMO: Sean Davey

Leicester Tigers 35-30 Gloucester

A thoroughly entertaining game at Welford Road saw Leicester Tigers secure a 35-30 bonus-point victory over Gloucester.

Tigers were 27-13 down at half-time but second-half tries from Manu Tuilagi and Peter Betham saw Leicester launch a remarkable comeback to keep their semi-final hopes alive.

Gloucester took an early lead in the third minute after Owen Williams was pinned at the breakdown and Greig Laidlaw converted the penalty for 3-0.

Tigers scored two tries in four minutes through Telusa Veainu and Tuilagi got the home side into the lead for the first time.

First, Tuilagi dragged in two defenders before feeding outside centre Betham who put full-back Veainu away to score in the corner.

Williams missed the touchline conversion but Tigers stretched their lead in the 12th minute through England international Tuilagi.

A high looping pass from Ben Youngs on the short side was tapped inside by Betham giving Tuilagi an easy finish from short range. That made it 10-3.

The remainder of the first half was all Gloucester as they proceeded to score 24 unanswered points before the half-time whistle.

Another successful Laidlaw penalty narrowed the deficit to 10-6 before fly-half James Hook intercepted a Betham pass to set up Gloucester's first try of the afternoon.

Hook outran Tuilagi before passing to Steve McColl to touch down for his second try of the season with Laidlaw adding the extras to give Gloucester a 13-10 lead just before the half-hour mark.

Henry Trinder extended the Cherry & Whites' lead when he stepped inside Williams for his 19th the Premiership try in his career.

Laidlaw gave the West Country side a ten-point lead before Gloucester's third try in nine minutes was scored by Paddy McAllister from short range after a series of pick and drives.

Laidlaw again added the extras before a penalty in front of the posts on the 40 minute mark for Williams meant the half-time score was 13-27 to the visitors.

Leicester came out fighting in the second half with a successful Williams penalty before Tuilagi had his second try of the afternoon after 46 minutes to narrow the lead to just seven points.

Tigers continued their comeback with a 55th minute penalty, again slotted over by Williams, to bring the score to 23-27.

Laidlaw maintained his 100 per cent record for the day with his sixth successful kick to restore Gloucester's ten-point lead with a 65th-minute penalty.

Leicester had a try bonus point in the 67th minute after Dominic Barrow stole a Gloucester defensive lineout which was passed along the line for Betham to cross in the corner.

Goneva had Tigers' fifth try of the afternoon as Leicester regained the lead with six minutes remaining which was successfully converted by Williams to give the home side a five-point lead.

An attacking lineout gave Gloucester one last chance to try and earn victory but after numerous phases Leicester earned the penalty to secure a vital five points and move back into the top four.

The scorers:

For Leicester Tigers:

Tries: Veainu, Betham, Tuilagi 2, Goneva

Cons: Williams 2

Pens: Williams 2

For Gloucester:

Tries: Trinder, McColl, McAllister'

Cons: Laidlaw 3

Pens: Laidlaw 3

Teams:

Leicester Tigers: 15 Telusa Veainu, 14 Adam Thompstone, 13 Peter Betham, 12 Manu Tuilagi, 11 Vereniki Goneva, 10 Owen Williams, 9 Ben Youngs, 8 Ed Slater (captain), 7 Lachlan McCaffrey, 6 Tom Croft, 5 Graham Kitchener, 4 Dom Barrow, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Harry Thacker, 1 Logovi'i Mulipola.

Replacements: 16 Greg Bateman, 17 Marcos Ayerza, 18 Fraser Balmain, 19 Sebastian de Chaves, 20 Brendon O'Connor, 21 Sam Harrison, 22 Freddie Burns, 23 Mathew Tait.

Gloucester: 15 Tom Marshall, 14 Rob Cook, 13 Henry Trinder, 12 Mark Atkinson, 11 Steve McColl, 10 James Hook, 9 Greig Laidlaw (captain), 8 Ben Morgan, 7 Matt Kvesic, 6 Gareth Evans, 5 Mariano Galarza, 4 Tom Savage, 3 Paul Doran-Jones, 2 Darren Dawidiuk, 1 Paddy McAllister.

Replacements: 16 Luke Cole, 17 Yann Thomas, 18 John Afoa, 19 Elliott Stooke, 20 Lewis Ludlow, 21 Callum Braley, 22 Ollie Thorley, 23 Jacob Rowan.

Referee: JP Doyle

Assistant referees: Nigel Carrick, Paul Burton

TMO: David Grashoff

Sources: @premrugby  & AFP