Mckellar’s Tigers get kick out of Pollard
HERO HANDRE GIVES SAINTS THE BOOT
17 LEICESTER boss Dan Mckellar watched Handre Pollard kick Northampton into submission – and reckons the Springbok drags his team-mates to another level.
Fly-half Pollard slotted six kicks out of seven – earning a haul of 16 points – as Leicester got just their second victory of the season in this East Midlands derby.
He kept the scoreboard ticking over in a dull first half before the game exploded in the second period with Northampton rallying despite being down to 13 men before they were put away.
Wales flanker Tommy Reffell ruled the breakdown for the hosts and tries from prop Francois van Wyk and back-row Hanro Liebenberg did the rest.
But it was Pollard, a double World Cup winner, who kept Mckellar’s side ahead when tries were hard to come by and showed his pedigree.
Mckellar said: “He is world class and he is in a rare patch of form at the moment off the tee.
“It was nice for him to step up and apply scoreboard pressure.
“He is a big personality in the game and to have him in our dressing room every week just gives the players enormous confidence.
“He has won back-to-back World Cups now and he presents that aura. He is incredibly humble and respectful – and he is just all about the team.”
A first half with almost no attacking rugby ended with
Tigers 12-3 in front, with all the points coming from Pollard’s boot.
The game sparked into life after the break when Leicester piled on the pressure near the Northampton line winning two penalties, which they kicked for lineouts and two scrums before finally getting over the line.
Saints hooker Sam Matavesi went in the bin for killing the ball on his own line, and with veteran prop Dan Cole the hosts steamrollered the third scrum and Van Wyk went over in the chaos. Saints lost another front-rower when Ethan Waller was binned at the final scrum, but with 13 men they took the game to the Tigers.
The original penalty had come when lock Chunya Munga was penalised and skipper Lewis Ludlam was marched back 10 yards by ref Karl Dickson for dissent.
Saints boss Phil Dowson said: “I was surprised at the breakdown penalty.
“We were 12-3 down, 51 minutes on the clock, Liebenberg is sat in the middle of our ruck, I don’t feel Chunya is holding him in.
“That goes against us and then 10 metres for dissent because we are frustrated at that. It seemed quite a contentious decision. It is a swing penalty, effectively.”
And he added: “Discipline and the breakdown were the two key things that let us down.”
Pollard’s conversion made it 19-3 and Leicester looked like they had broken the back of the game – but Saints had other ideas.
Full-back George Furbank pulled one back before Liebenberg crossed.
Centre Tommy Freeman had one chalked off for the visitors, however they kept scrapping and Matavesi, back from his card, sprinted over at the death but Tigers had done enough.
Mckellar added: “We said we would have to grind out a win and I am really pleased with how we went about it.”
LEICESTER: Tries: Van Wyk, Liebenberg Cons: Pollard (2)
Pens: Pollard (4) NORTHAMPTON: Tries: Furbank, Matavesi Cons: Furbank (2)
Pen: Smith