Falcons fall foul of Tigers revival
NEW BOSS MURPHY LEICESTER TALISMAN
LEICESTER TIGERS NEWCASTLE FALCONS 49 33
LEICESTER gave Geordan Murphy the perfect start as interim head coach as they came out on top in a thrilling 49-33 victory over Newcastle.
It had been a turbulent week for the Tigers with Matt O’Connor sacked on Monday following their 40-6 humiliation to Exeter in their Gallagher Premiership opener, leaving former Ireland and British & Irish Lions full-back Murphy in command on a temporary basis.
But the 40-year-old, who made 316 appearances for the Tigers, watched his men get off to a winning start against his old coach Dean Richards.
George Ford starred in the Welford Road success with 29 points, including a try, with Jonny May (2), with Manu Tuilagi and Adam Thompstone also scoring tries.
There was no sign of early nerves from the hosts after their coaching shake-up, as they raced into a 22-0 lead within the opening 15 minutes.
Ford eradicated any pregame jitters with a try inside two minutes after a pulsating early phase from a buoyant Tigers side.
On his old hunting ground, Toby Flood was wayward with a penalty and Ford made him pay with three points of his own at the other end.
It got better when May bagged his first try of the game, collecting Brendon O’Connor’s pass after the flanker intercepted Flood’s loose midfield ball.
Soon it was three, with O’Connor setting up opposite wing Thompstone for a simple score in the corner.
Falcons hit back through Sonatane Takulua after Sinoti Sinoti’s surge, but the Tigers were back on the charge with their tails up when Ford added another penalty and Tuilagi Toby Flood missed a penalty and then turned the ball over in the build-up to Leicester’s first try on his return to his former stamping ground yesterday grabbed his 35th Tigers try and the bonus point.
But there were more points on the board when Vereniki Goneva went over in the corner, with Flood converting, before Ford was on hand for his third penalty of the game.
Leicester eased off slightly and they were made to pay as Newcastle edged their way back into the game, with Goneva stomping his way in for his second after a well-crafted move from the visiting backs.
The hosts reinstated their commanding lead with May clinging on to the ball to slide in the corner in the final action of the half.
After the break, the Falcons continued on the front foot, scoring two converted tries through Mark Wilson and Sami Mavinga – but between each score Ford remained cool from the tee with two penalties to extinguish any chance of Fal- cons getting within touching distance.
The hosts lost-full back Telusa Veainu to the sin bin after a deliberate offside, which saw Takulua held up in the corner and Newcastle sensing a dramatic comeback.
But the visitors could not make the extra man count as Leicester proved too strong, with Ford capping an impressive performance with a lastminute penalty.