Skip to main contentSkip to navigationSkip to navigation
Leicester-Tigers-London-Welsh
Laurence Pearce, of Leicester Tigers, charges into Chris Hala'ufia of London Welsh during their match at Welford Road Photograph: Phil Hutchinson/ActionPlus/Corbis
Laurence Pearce, of Leicester Tigers, charges into Chris Hala'ufia of London Welsh during their match at Welford Road Photograph: Phil Hutchinson/ActionPlus/Corbis

Leicester overcome London Welsh early onslaught after Chris Hala’ufia sees red

This article is more than 8 years old
Leicester 38-17 London Welsh

We came expecting a non-contest – and it is true Leicester duly collected a bonus-point win to move back into the top four for now – but this was a game of incident. Chris Hala’ufia has never trod softly into the arena, and the London Welsh No8 was at the centre of the most memorable moments, not least when he was sent off for, well, a couple of things. Bearing in mind their tendency to capitulate at the best of times, the Exiles did well to keep things respectable in his absence for the last 25 minutes. Indeed, they were a mere seven points adrift when he went – and, for the first time in the Premiership this season, had held a half-time lead.

Leicester moved up a gear early in the second half, and two tries from Laurence Pearce had re-established their control on the game. Pearce bumped off Hala’ufia in the build-up to his second – and the Tongan was clearly put out by that. Five minutes later he walloped Pearce with a high tackle, pretty much to the throat, which might have been enough for red. Pearce lay stricken as play continued and as Hala’ufia got to his feet he brought an open palm down aggressively on Pearce’s head. That was certainly enough to coax the red.

He may yet be in trouble for a no less ferocious hit on a streaker at the end of the first half, just before he paved the way for the try through which Welsh held that half-time lead. A less robust gentleman than the streaker might not have got up from it. All in all, this was not your regulation Premiership fare.

Things had seemed fairly routine when Ben Youngs went over for the game’s first try in the fourth minute, strolling through a gap so wide that the try was greeted not just with a cheer but, it seemed, actual laughter. Far from paving the way for a rout, though, the indignity galvanised the visitors. This season, it has not taken so much to cause the Tigers problems, even on their own patch, and as the game wore on Welsh seemed to sense this. Chris Elder was given the kicking duties ahead of Olly Barkley. He missed one penalty from 40 metres in front, before landing another from inside his own half on an angle.

It was at his third attempt a couple of minutes before the break that the fireworks suddenly erupted. As he prepared, our streaker (proper old-school, naked one) went on a weaving run through the Welsh defence before being felled by a mighty, chest-high hit from Hala’ufia. He did well to emerge alive from that and wisely trotted on to the touchline, but Elder missed the shot at goal. Never mind, Hala’ufia, clearly pumped up, next embarked on a no-less brutal charge through the Tigers defence to only a couple of metres short. Koree Britton was on hand to take his off-load and score a try to stun Welford Road. Will Robinson’s conversion earned Welsh that half-time lead.

The robust Pearce, picked ahead of Jordan Crane, scored his first try from a driven lineout three minutes into the second half, before claiming his second a few minutes later when he finished a move he had started with a tapped free-kick. At 17-10 after 50 minutes and a try away from the bonus point, Leicester were feeling a little better about things, but their form is still a long way short of impressive, with the season’s sharp end fast approaching.

Five minutes later again, their task was made easier by Hala’ufia’s latest red card. The bonus-point try followed 10 minutes on from that, Sam Harrison finishing after Niall Morris’s 60-yard break. Further tries from Jamie Gibson and Tom Youngs sandwiched a reply by Leicester-bound Opeti Fonua, but the impression the game made on the memory had been set well before that.

Comments (…)

Sign in or create your Guardian account to join the discussion

Most viewed

Most viewed