Round 15 of the Gallagher PREM was the league at its unpredictable best.
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The top two both suffered heavy defeats while the race for The Play-Offs took another twist, adding yet more intrigue to The Run-In…
Tigers maul Saints
The away zone trial was in full force at Mattioli Woods Welford Road but all the noise came from the home fans as an inspired Leicester Tigers ran out 41-17 winners over leaders Northampton Saints.
Jamie Blamire scored twice for the hosts, with Ollie Chessum, Ollie Hassell-Collins, Adam Radwan and Freddie Steward also dotting down on a memorable day for the hosts, who cemented their place in the top four.
Chessum and George Martin were among the standout performers as the Tigers pack dominated that of their neighbours. The only negative for the hosts came courtesy of Izaia Perese’s red card following a head-on-head collision with George Furbank – there were also five yellow cards in an encounter which never lacks bite.
Tigers head coach Geoff Parling said: “I still believe that when we play our game and we have that emotional edge then we can play and challenge anyone, which you saw. Our challenge is can we do that week on week.”
Leicester went into the weekend well-placed for a top four finish but are now within striking distance of a home Play-Off match. Just a point back from Bath and five behind Saints, they have some momentum ahead of next week's trip to Sale.
Chiefs lay down marker
Exeter Chiefs roared back to form in the best possible manner with a convincing 35-12 win over Bath Rugby, who missed the chance to leapfrog Saints at the summit.
Fresh from their membership approving a takeover by the American owners of AFC Bournemouth, Chiefs ran in five tries – including Len Ikitau’s first in the Gallagher PREM – against a visiting side who were dealt an early blow following Quinn Roux’s red card.
Chiefs will not be getting ahead of themselves and face a tough run-in, starting with a trip to Allianz Stadium on Saturday for The Big Summer Kick-Off against a Harlequins side buoyed by a 76-17 win at Newcastle Red Bulls.
A visit to Leicester Tigers follows before Exeter welcome old foes Saracens on the final day – a prospect Rob Baxter is relishing.
“You can’t see it not meaning something to one of us,” he told TNT Sports.
“If it gets to that stage and it is winner-takes-all for the top four, that will make it a great occasion at Sandy Park.
“Saracens would love to knock us out and we would love to knock Saracens out. I’m not going to run away from it, as that’s the truth.”
The standout performer was Ikitau, who was heavily involved beyond his try, and will have a big role to play if Exeter are to hold off the teams behind them in the Play-Off race.
Sarries blitz Bears
Saracens will be similarly bullish about their trip to Sandy Park and they enjoyed a particularly fruitful trip to the West Country in Round 15, beating Bristol Bears 41-26.
A first-half blitz of four tries in 12 minutes did the damage at Ashton Gate, while Fergus Burke added another later in a breathless first half which ended 34-21 in the visitors’ favour.
The second period was cagier but Sarries were never truly in danger of letting their lead slip and sealed the deal when Tobias Elliott intercepted a pass inside the Bears 22 and dived over.
Sarries are seven points behind Chiefs but have a favourable fixture list, with two home games – against Gloucester Rugby and Harlequins – before their trip to Devon. This weekend was huge for them, with Oval Insights giving them just a 3% chance of making the Play-Offs had they won.
Player of the Match Tom Willis said: “The main emotion is relief, as we know at this point if we lose another game, the season is done. With me heading off at the end of the season, it means even more.
“We are not putting too much pressure on ourselves. We know they are must-win games but we know that if we go out and do what we can, we would like to think we can get a result.”
