Heavy artillery rolls through to give Harrison armchair ride
THIS convincing seventry victory set an ideal benchmark for Matt O’Connor’s troops to build upon in 2017/18.
The Italian minnows were not particularly pesky opponents but, for a squad without some of its big names, Tigers convincingly came through the challenge.
George Ford and Ben Youngs are yet to feature in pre-season, while Matt Toomua is still finding his feet following a first appearance in a Tigers’ shirt for several months.
And then there’s Manu Tuilagi. His call-up to the England training squad – incident apart – hinted that the 26-year-old is approaching full fitness and Leicester’s boss confirmed that he is not far away.
“Hopefully Manu will be involved next week,” O’Connor said.
“He’s still working through his rehab and it was probably a week too early on Friday.
“He’s working really hard and he wants to get out there and contribute to the group. He’s always fantastic and we will make an assessment in the middle of next week to see how he’s doing for the Ospreys game.”
Should the 26-times capped international find his form then a ToomuaTuilagi midfield partnership will have a particularly enticing look to it for Leicester supporters.
With George Ford firing out passes behind a forward pack bolstered by the arrivals of Dominic Ryan and Sione Kalamafoni, the Midlanders should quite rightly demand an improvement this season.
Tigers’ fans may well have to wait for that axis to become a reality, however, with O’Connor in no rush to introduce all his star players at once.
There was still a Ford on the field on Friday night as George’s brother, Joe, took the reins at stand-off. The elder of the two siblings may not have the attacking prowess of the England representative nor the same gameawareness, but he was ideal for deconstructing Treviso’s weaknesses.
Alongside the excellent Sam Harrison they controlled the contest for large parts and enabled the forwards to flex their muscle from close range.
Front-rowers Logovi’i Mulipola and George McGuigan both touched down before Treviso hit back via the try of the game.
Excellent hands opened space on the right-hand side and, after an inchperfect grubber through, Ignacio Brex crossed the whitewash.
Matt Smith and Federico Ruzza then traded tries, but Ryan’s effort on the stroke of half-time proved to be the decisive blow.
Although a slow Leicester start to the second period gave the visitors an opportunity to find their way back into contest, the Italians toiled without much success.
It was no surprise to see the dam eventually burst, and when it did, scores for Ellis Genge and Ben White – who scampered over twice – completed the victory.