Buuuut
The most wonderful thing about tiggers iiiiiisssss

THEY LOST !!!!!!!!!!!! HAhahahahahahahahahhahahhaahhaha

EDF CUP

If you are a Leicester supporter look away now
If you want an unbiased factually correct match report look away now
If you enjoy moaning look away now
If you think this was a meaningless game look away now
If you were one of the people who left early and did not stay to applaude the team off the pitch shame on you.

For those of you still with me wasn't that great ???  

It was three o'clock on a Saturday. There was a nip in the air and the winter sun was setting over the Churches stand. This is when rugby is supposed to be played. And played it was. Don't come whingeing to me that this was a "dead rubber" that this was a "wandies game". This was a game of rugby between two local rivals fought with guts and determination and no little skill by all who took part.

There was not one player on that pitch today who wanted to be on the losing side. I had been looking forward to this match with keen anticipation and it did not disappoint. For those of you who went shopping I hope you had fun. Personally I would rather extract my toenails one by one with a rusty spanner than go shopping in town this close to Christmas on a Saturday. For the 13058 who turned up at Franklins Gardens there was rugby on the menu. It felt like a meal I hadn't dined on for a while and it tasted very sweet.

Saints started like Hats on Wheels (been a long time since we could use that hasn't it ?!).  I was just about to turn to my mate to say "that's the best backs move I've seen all season" when they only went and finished it off after about 39 seconds of play. Matthieu Bourret crossing for his first saints try on his home debut. Tiggers were shell shocked.

The next attack ended with a penalty in front of the posts to saints that Myler potted having missed the previous conversion attempt from wide out. It proved to be the only kick that went over all afternoon as it turned out not to be a kickers day. Humphries missed three penalties for Tiggers and Murphy (I think) failed to convert their only try. For Saints Myler missed all the conversions and one pen.

But if the place kicking was left wanting the kicking from hand and the passing and running lines were a vast improvement on much of what has been seen at the Gardens this term. Myler orchestrated with confidence, Kydd ran straight and offloaded intelligently, Mallon ran fast caught passes and fed Going or Bourret who ran straight and hard. Digger was , well Digger, Vass had his best game for a while by keeping it simple and they all tackled with guts and determination.

Saints second try came from the forwards who led by Matt Lord were also playing with a single minded determination. Harding went over in the corner from a driving maul but it was the big Tongan who got the pats on the back from his mates. Harding's forte was in the loose where he combined with the backs majestically all afternoon.The rest of the forwards did well in the lineout, held their own in the scrum (until Emms replaced Budgen late in the second half) and stood solid around the park. My one gripe is that they still gave away too many penalties but who can understand the refereeing of the breakdown ?? It certainly baffles me. 

Saints nearly scored again when Bourret was adjudged to have knocked on over the line. The ball went dead and the referee restarted with a drop out although It had appeared to me that saints support runners had been taken out off the ball and the resultant fight went unpunished. Half time saw saints on 13 and that sweetest of phrases "Leicester nil".

The second half saw Tiggers enjoying a lot of possession but the Black Gold and Green held firm. Some of the tackling was immense. Saints third try came from a cross kick from Myler, patted down by a leaping Digger into Wyles waiting hands. Tiggers finally managed a response through a series of driving mauls that eventually saw Abrahams touch down.

The last ten minutes of the game then epitomised what this win was about for me. Tiggers were determined to cross for another try. Even as the time wore on and it was evident that they could not win the game they were determined to cross the Saints line. Several penalties were tapped and run, so much was their desperation to score. "Dead Rubber"??  not on your life mate. This was an East Midlands derby and if you don't understand what that means then you probably went shopping.

Again and again saints tackled their hearts out and the crowd cheered every encounter. It is not ofen you see Tiggers driven back in the tackle but it happened today again and again.The saints held firm. The final score 18-5.   

It was not a perfect performance.Too many penalties gave Tiggers more possession than they had a right to, the ball was turned over more often than it shoud have been. The scrum creaked a bit in the second half. Myler was given man of the match, and a fine game he had,but today there was a "team" out there. Players who knew what they were supposed to be doing, working together, giving it their all. There was offloading, players taking the ball at speed, cutting good lines and in defence tackling their hearts out.Was it a co-incidence I wonder that with a certain Kiwi watching from the stands this team played with a style I haven't seen for a long while at Franklins Gardens and although some will argue that Leicester have a far stronger squad depth than Northampton these "reserves" stood up to the mark, played with "Spurut" and were victorious.
 

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