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European Rugby Champions Cup: Leicester Tigers 11-34 Racing 92

Last updated on .From the section Rugby Unioncomments164

Simon Zebo
Racing 92 full-back Simon Zebo has made 35 appearances for Ireland
European Rugby Champions Cup - Pool Four
Leicester: (11) 11
Tries: Worth Pens: Ford (2)
Racing 92: (24) 34
Tries: Iribaren, Imhoff (2), Vakatawa Cons: Russell (4) Pens: Russell (2)

Leicester's hopes of reaching the Champions Cup knockout stages are all but over after defeat by Racing 92 at Welford Road.

The French side remain unbeaten at the top of Pool Four after a bonus-point win through tries from Teddy Iribaren, Juan Imhoff and Virimi Vakatawa.

Full-back George Worth crossed for the Tigers, who are third in the pool.

Leicester are eight points behind second-placed Ulster with two pool games left to play.

Champions Cup Pool Four
PlayedWonDrawPoints
1. Racing 9244019
2. Ulster43014
3. Leicester4106
4. Scarlets4002

Leicester's leaky defence

Leicester have lost eight successive games in all competitions for the first time since 1975 and the Tigers' defensive problems were plain to see against Racing.

Iribaren found a gap to dive over from short range for the French side's first try.

Then former Ireland utility back Simon Zebo found it all too easy to cut through and send Imhoff over.

When Scotland fly-half Finn Russell faked a pass left, he was able to step through Leicester tackles - a move that led to Vakatawa's try.

Dan Cole made life even harder for the Leicester defence when he was sin-binned for dangerous play, although the hosts actually managed to hold firm while he was off the field.

It seemed as though Racing would have to make do without a bonus point until Imhoff scored again in the dying seconds.

The result puts Racing five points clear of Ulster at the top of the pool.

What they said

Leicester interim head coach Geordan Murphy said:

"It was effectively like going into a prize fight, standing in the middle of the ring and keeping your hands by your side.

"Against Racing's quality you can't afford to let yourself get punched in the face because it knocked us out."

Teams

Leicester: Worth; Thompstone, Tuilagi, Toomua, May; Ford (c), White; Genge, Polota-Nau, Cole, Spencer, Kitchener, Fitzgerald, O'Connor, Kalamafoni.

Replacements: Youngs for White (53), Kerr for Polota-Nau (53), Wells for Kitchener (55), Thompson for O'Connor (58), Cortes for Thompstone (64), Williams for Kalamafoni (69), Thompstone for Cortes (70), Owen for Tuilagi (72), Gigena for Genge (75), Cortes for Cole (79)

Sin-bin: Cole (60)

Racing 92: Zebo; Dupichot, Vakatawa, Chavancy (c), Imhoff; Russell, Iribaren; Gogichashvili, Avei, Tameifuna, Ryan, Nakarawa, Chouzenoux, Le Roux, Claassen.

Replacements: Kakovin for Gogichashvili (50), Gomes Sa for Tameifuna (58), Klemenczak for Vakatawa (60), Machenaud for Iribaren (66), Sanconnie for Claassen (66), Volavola for Zebo (67) Szarzewski for Avei (69), Bird for Nakarawa (72)

Ref: George Clancy (Ire)

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164 comments

  • Comment posted by Iron Rose, at 14:56 16 Dec 2018

    Leicester are in trouble

  • Comment posted by TWR1983, at 15:09 16 Dec 2018

    Finn Russell, how good?! The kind of player who make rugby worth watching. Not exactly sensible and solid like a Sexton or Biggar, much. much more fun though.

  • Comment posted by theTrinity, at 15:07 16 Dec 2018

    Ian Tomlinson is right. Leicester are far and away the biggest club in England. Big stadium, big history, huge following. Who else would be? Saracens? 10,000 capacity! Behave yourself

  • Comment posted by Nosferatu, at 15:33 16 Dec 2018

    As a Tigers fan it makes me despondent to see my beloved club, who used to be European powerhouses, reduced to pathetic whipping boys.

  • Comment posted by WePayTooMuchForSport, at 19:07 16 Dec 2018

    @71 Heaven forbid these two little Scottish clubs get a little excited when holding their own among the big boys.

    Scotland's only two clubs are holding their own and I for one think its good to see. Glasgow when fired up are one of the best teams in the UK to watch.

    Well done to both. From an Ulster fan.

  • Comment posted by TUCO, at 19:32 16 Dec 2018

    Well as a Taff. I can say sincerely, that it's sad to see a great club like Leicester, struggle so much. This club has been averaging crowds of around the 20k mark for years. Numbers that most clubs and regions can only dream of attracting! For me they'll always be European royalty, along with Munster and Toulouse, and they've helped to make this great tournament what it is today.

  • Comment posted by BillB, at 15:32 16 Dec 2018

    11 Leicester boy
    A rethinking of this great club is certainly required and I believe it should start with the board room.
    How Murphy can get a full coaching role when we’ve had our worst run of form since 1975 amazes me and is symptomatic of a much wider malaise that can’t be helped when the board want to add hotels and turn tigers into Chelsea under Ken Bates. Fortress my backside

  • Comment posted by User0718718970, at 15:05 16 Dec 2018

    Got to agree with @2 if they carry on like this relegation is a real prospect, whilst not a tiger fan the premiership will be poorer without them.

  • Comment posted by ian tomlinson, at 14:57 16 Dec 2018

    a sad sight to the biggest club in england in such a mess,can`t tackle,scrummage and the lineout is non existant,relegation is looming,i think it`s between either leicester or northampton(who are just as bad)

  • Comment posted by footyfan94, at 15:09 16 Dec 2018

    Russell and Laidlaw's goal kicking this season has been sublime. Their goal kicking for Scotland will be so useful over the next year for Scotland with a lot of tough games coming up. Good to have two guys we can be fairly confident of getting points from the tee anywhere in the opposition. Going very important in big games if we want to pull off a big victory or two next year

  • Comment posted by adelstein, at 19:07 16 Dec 2018

    Finn russell has certainly slotted in well at Racing. His breaks and offloading are very impressive

  • Comment posted by ragerancher, at 17:29 16 Dec 2018

    English rugby needs to take a serious look at ourselves. It seems we play to a different interpretation of the laws to the rest of the planet and are struggling as a result. Our league is not the best but it is the most attritional and our style of rugby is the most conservative of any nation.

    Something needs to be done, we can't keep deluding ourselves that the current setup is fine.

  • Comment posted by User0676266253, at 16:10 16 Dec 2018

    @17 There are some posters who are just trolls and others who are after a bit of banter. Then there's you, going on about your mortgage free, detached 4 bedroom house in a select area, but you come across as such a bitter, hollow yet egotistical and bigotted individual with no redeeming features. Perhaps having some counselling will help?

  • Comment posted by Iron Rose, at 15:26 16 Dec 2018

    Lots of empty seats at the game. Maybe a big club but not on the pitch where it counts. Won the Anglo-Welsh Cup in 2017 but last won the Premiership Rugby title in 2013. The club has been going backwards.

  • Comment posted by LD Rob, at 18:02 16 Dec 2018

    What is in the Leicester DNA? Answer, get yourself a massive pack and then the backs are add-ons. Instead Leicester spent on the backs but the pack is light weight.

  • Comment posted by Stephen, at 15:54 16 Dec 2018

    Wow! We will soon be bracketed with London Irish, Leeds, Rotherham et al, as Premiership " no hopers". Meanwhile at the office all is okay, with all assembling to "work on weaknesses!" Give me strength. We are in danger of oblivion...unless the powers that be see fit to go out & hire a top class coaching team.Wonder if they have the foresight??

  • Comment posted by Nick Selby, at 17:05 16 Dec 2018

    If we lose at home to Quinn’s, I fear the worst. No club is too big to be relegated and if we are, it is no more than our incompetent board deserve. They have created this mess over a number of years. Fans could see the decline but the board were oblivious to it.

  • Comment posted by Chris Williams, at 19:18 16 Dec 2018

    oldfatprat,

    Ten years ago Andy Robinson predicted that the then Magners league could outstrip the English league.

    Hmmm?

    btw - The Tigers first team squad has 21 international players

  • Comment posted by Ross K, at 19:40 16 Dec 2018

    I realise a lot of the comments about qualification are just intended to wind people up - often successfully. But being objective about it - the current system is probably reasonable and based on the 3 main leagues getting roughly even numbers. Things change - it was only a few years ago English clubs had the biggest number of qualifiers in the quarters. Things never stand still and I'm Scottish.

  • Comment posted by Chris Williams, at 20:38 16 Dec 2018

    oldfatparp,

    last couple of months?!

    Why not last week?

    Makes your stats even more ludicrous.

    You still know squiddly dot about Scottish rugby other than what you googled in the past 10 minutes.

    Can you name ten Scottish club sides without the aid of Google?