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Leicester director of rugby Richard Cockerill was particularly delighted to have topped such a tough group after his side beat Toulouse in the snow at Welford Road to qualify for the quarter-finals. - 20/01/2013 22:34
Former champions Leicester Tigers and Toulouse meet in a winner-takes-all Sunday showdown at Welford Road for a prestigious quarter-final place.
Both sides, who have won the tournament six times between them, know a victory will win the Pool and secure a place in the last eight of the competition.
Four-time champions Toulouse lead the Pool from the Tigers by two points after their 35-14 bonus point victory over Italian outfit Benetton Treviso at home in the last round.
Leicester, who won the Heineken Cup back in 2001 and 2002, scrapped a 15-15 draw with the Ospreys in the Liberty Stadium in Swansea to keep their hopes of a place in the knock-out stages alive.
Toulouse recorded a comfortable 23-9 victory over Richard Cockerill’s side in the first game between the sides back in October but will be aware the Tigers will be a different proposition at home in front of a sell-out crowd of 24,000.
The French giants, who won this tournament in 1996, 2003, 2005, 2010, have an impressive pedigree in Europe and last failed to reach the knockout stages of the Heineken Cup back in 2007.
The Tigers will be desperate to secure a place in the last eight, having failed to make the quarter-finals of European rugby’s premier tournament for two of the last three seasons.
Match Facts
- Leicester are unbeaten in their last 21 home games in the Heineken Cup since Munster Rugby won 21-19 at Welford Road on 22 October 2006.
- Leicester’s only win in their last five encounters with French opponents was 23-19 over ASM Clermont Auvergne at Welford Road on 17 December 2011.
- Toulouse’s only Round 6 victory since 2008 came at Sale Sharks (19-13) in January 2010.
- Leicester have won three of the clashes between these sides, while Toulouse’s victory over the Tigers earlier in the campaign was their fourth win against their long-standing English rivals.
- The only time that Toulouse have missed out on a quarter-final spot since 2001/02 was in 2006/07.
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L'ultima giornata di Heineken Cup girava tutta attorno allo scontro diretto tra Tigers e Tolosa e sotto la neve l'apertura inglese ha preso a calci i campioni di Francia eliminandoli dalla competizione a facendo un favore al Munster che passa come ottava del ranking lasciando fuori i campioni in carica di Leinster - 21/01/2013 09:06
Leicester Tigers are through to the knock-out stages for the 11th time after a thrilling and full-blooded 9-5 victory over Toulouse in front of a capacity 24,000 strong Welford Road crowd.
It was a winner-takes-all contest in appalling conditions of swirling snow and in the end it was sheer dogged determination that came out on top – and they will now face another major French test when they go to Toulon in the quarter-finals.
It meant four-times champions Toulouse fail to qualify for the quarter-finals for only the fourth time in 18 tournaments and will go on to contest Amlin Challenge Cup honours on the road at Perpignan.
The Tigers last lost a home tournament game when they went down to Munster in 2006 with Toulouse’s poor goal kicking letting them down when it really mattered in this contest.
Yet the Tigers suffered a blow before kick-off with Manu Tuilagi failing an 11th hour fitness test on the leg injury that saw him limp off against the Ospreys seven days earlier but they still started far the brighter.
Niall Morris did lose the ball in the act of diving for the line but significantly in the testing conditions the Tigers had already demonstrated they held the whip hand at the scrums and another Toulouse infringement gave Toby Flood the chance for the first points.
Despite the swirling snow the outside half struck his penalty sweetly for the first points, Lionel Beauxis failing to master the conditions at the other end with his initial chance to level matters.
And although he got closer with his next attempt Toulouse saw that bounce back off the upright to let the Tigers off the hook.
And if the Tuilagi injury had been a pre-match concern, the Tigers then lost major ball-carrier Steve Mafi as the Tongan when down as if pole-axed when his hamstring went in a kick-and-chase.
And not even a change of goal kicker could improve Toulouse’s efforts to get points on the board as reward for their pressure and slick off-loading as Luke McAlister also saw his penalty attempt hit the upright and bounce to safety.
Then it was Flood’s turn to see points go begging as he sent his next penalty chance wide before getting back in the groove to open up a six-points advantage.
Louis Picamoles thought he had been driven over by his fellow forward for the try the game was crying out for but the TMO ruled no try to deny the powerhouse No 8.
And if that was a reprieve for the Tigers they promptly cashed in with Flood firing over a long-range penalty to open up a healthy advantage in the most trying and testing of conditions.
And it was those conditions that contributed to the try that brought Toulouse back into the game, Matthew Tait failing to take a high ball and Yoann Huget pouncing on the loose ball for an unconverted try.
That was two points squandered and another wayward penalty followed from McAlister as they had clearly left their kicking boots back in Toulouse.
Flood, who had done so much to put the Tigers in a promising position, was yellow carded for a professional foul as Toulouse attacked to leave the Tigers a man short for almost all the remaining time.
But they held out with Toulouse left to kick themselves for those missed chances.
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