They had full control agrees Blackett

LEE Blackett saw his team slump to a fifth Premiership defeat and said: “We were just off the pace. Literally, from the start, they won the collisions and most of the battles.

“And when we did get the ball we just looked under pressure and came up with errors. Leicester had full control.”

He added: “It’s a real tough one to take and the only positive is that we have another game next weekend to do things better against London Irish.”

Leicester head coach Steve Borthwick praised his players for working out a way to win after Jasper Wiese was the first of those three dismissals.

“We had to get on after that and I have to credit the players.”

He added: “The protocols are in place and the referee followed them. Player welfare is paramount.”

He urged everyone to look at the decisions calmly. “We don’t want people jumping up and down and shouting red card. That’s not the way me and my coaching team are going to conduct ourselves.”