Leicester Tigers produced a stunning second half fightback to deny the Ospreys a famous victory at Welford Road in a Pool 3 Heineken Cup clash.
Ryan Jones’s men upstaged their English opponents in the first half and led 26-15 at halftime but despite Dan Biggar’s immaculate boot keeping the scoreboard ticking over, the Tigers ran over for two second half tries through Lucas Amorosino and Jeremy Staunton to bring the home side back from the dead. Biggar banged over 22 points to bounce back after a shaky start but the Ospreys will be livid they let a golden opportunity slip through their fingers in what was a pulsating contest.
The Tigers burst out of the blocks in the third minute when Anthony Allen burst through Biggar’s tackle to set Scott Hamilton free who put winger Johne Murphy clear. Jeremy Staunton missed a penalty but quickly made amends in the 10th minute to send the home side 8-0 ahead. The Ospreys clawed their way back through two Biggar penalties as the Tigers pack began dominating their opposite numbers.
Despite their dominance in the set pieces Leicester had little to show for their efforts. They paid the ultimate price in the 23rd minute when Biggar cut a great line inside James Hook to give Shane Williams a sniff of a chance and the little maestro raced to the try-line to put the Ospreys in front for the first time in the match.
Biggar’s confidence was sky high when he banged over a long range drop goal. Tommy Bowe then burgled a try for the visitors when Staunton threw out a pass to no-one. With Biggar adding the extras and another penalty the Ospreys were in unchartered waters at 26-8 up.
The Tigers were staring down the barrel but they then showed why Welford Road is such a fortress. The Ospreys were unable to secure a high ball and Allen’s cute pass to fellow centre Billy Twelvetrees who raced 30m to score in the corner. With Mike Phillips being penalised for a late charge on Twelvetrees when he scored the Tigers try, the blonde centre had a chance from halfway to make further inroads into the Ospreys lead but his shot hit the uprights which gave the visitors a 15-26 lead at the break.
Expecting a Tigers backlash after the restart, the Ospreys increased their lead with another Biggar penalty but Richard Cockerill’s side produced a killer touch to bring Leicester within touching distance. From a scrum, Hamilton went blind and brushed past Phillips to give Lucas Amorosino a clear run to the Ospreys line.
With Twelvetrees conversion the score was 22-29 and the Ospreys knew they were in for a ferocious onslaught from the home side as the match reached its conclusion. Biggar and Twelvetrees traded penalties before the Tigers scored their forth try to claim a valuable bonus point five minutes from the final whistle. Bowe jumped out of the defensive line and Staunton skipped through to force his way over.
Twelvetrees conversion tied the scores and at the end the Ospreys were clinging on for a draw after having seemingly having the game in the bag at halftime. A disappointed Ryan Jones admitted the draw was a bitter pill to swallow. “It’s a missed opportunity for us. Certain facets of the game did not go to plan. We’ve got to go home and pick the bones out of it. We conceded too many cheap points and the scoreboard reflected that.”
