Leicester 20 Ulster 9: Laying the foundations

In a game that typified the ferocious intensity and competitiveness of the Heineken Cup, Leicester finally started to display the mental resolve that has made trips to Welford Road so feared for opposition in the past in outmuscling Ulster to a 20-9 win. There was no try-bonus-point again, but this was never a game that looked like producing one. In being denied a losing-bonus-point, Ulster have been kept at arm's length in the pool before their next two games where they could realistically be aiming for nine or ten points against Aironi. The performance from the home team was archetypal Leicester Tigers: a lot of power and a little guile.

Source: David Rodgers / Getty Images (courtesy of The Guardian)

The porous nature of Leicester's defence this season has caused them to look towards a bitter enemy from the past in Shaun Edwards to bolster their coaching team and it was as if the Lancashire man's likely instructions were already ringing in the player's ears. The headline was nine points conceded to long-range penalties but the way in which Leicester contained Ulster was impressive. The penalty count was below every team's target of ten, the line-speed was consistently good even as the players tired and, most notably, the drift defence coped excellently with the threat from Andrew Trimble, Craig Gilroy and Simon Danielli.

This is where Leicester's collective defensive system has been exposed this season but the thirteen tackles from Matt Smith at outside centre were testament to a level of organisation seldom seen at Welford Road this season. Leicester rarely built up enough phases to get near to Ulster's try-line, but all good teams are built on a solid defence and the lack of attacking verve from the depleted centres is but a small loss if the opposition cannot get over the gain line.

A gutsy team performance was scattered with moments of class from some of Leicester's big-game players. Thomas Waldrom continues to take the fight to the opposition regardless of what is happening around him; a post-rugby career in the courier business awaits him, such is his consistency in delivering every time. He beats as many defenders as Alesana Tuilagi, he makes as many metres as Geordan Murphy, he tackles as much as Julian Salvi and he carries more than anybody. The offloads have, regrettably, disappeared from his game as he has become accustomed to the way Leicester play, but in a tight game as on Saturday, every one of his eighty-nine metres made with the ball was crucial.

Dan Cole continued to enhance his scrummaging reputation with, if not a knockout, a points victory over Ireland international Tom Court. Though some may question Richard Cockerill's recent favouring of Cole ahead of Martin Castrogiovanni at tight-head, the Leicester Tigers Director of Rugby seems to have found a useful way of getting the best out of both players.

The return of Ben Youngs provided some urgency in the back-line, but the consistent form of Sam Harrison in his absence has been extremely promising; in the space of a few weeks the Leicester-born scrum-half has propelled himself up from fourth-choice to second-choice and it is not unreasonable to suggest he could be pushing Youngs for a starting berth in the near future.

Where Ulster were far smarter than Leicester for large parts of the game was in their kicking; Paul Marshall and Ian Humphreys had a purpose that was lacking in Harrison and Toby Flood. A bad kick is made worse if there is no chase and the sight of Flood with arms held outstretched as not one of his team mates ran after an up-and-under suggested lack of communication or desire.

The big question for Leicester is whether their gradual resurgence will be enough to overcome the might of Clermont Auvergne. This latest win was not spectacular, but it was solid and the fifth game unbeaten in a row. To engage in a slugfest against Ulster was a useful rehearsal for the battle that will ensue with the French and that type of contest may be better suited to this current Leicester side.