Leicester Pool Three top dogs despite loss

Stade Francais 12 Leicester 6

Leicester remain top of Pool Three tonight after collecting a bonus point - but the Tigers had precious little else to smile about as they trudged off a beaten side by Stade Francais.

Stade were kicked to victory in a dour Heineken Cup clash by scrum-half Jerome Fillol, who was named man-of-the-match for his four penalties, though it was one of those days when the adjudicators will have been pushed to find a worthy winner.

Leicester managed none of the attacking zest that saw them rack up 57 points against Clermont Auvergne last week, while Stade Francais were clearly determined not to suffer a repeat of their defeat to the Ospreys.

All of which led to a forward-dominated encounter with little spark, little invention and a whole load of stoppages as the breakdown descended into a penalty-fest.

Andy Goode’s two penalties earned Leicester a losing bonus point which keeps them top of the group, but it was scant consolation on a frustrating afternoon for the three-times European champions.

It was a chance missed for Leicester. Stade were missing a clutch of internationals with Agustin Pichot, Sylvain Marconnet, captain David Auradu, Christophe Dominici and Stephan Glas all out injured.

But they responded to last week’s defeat at the Ospreys in dogged fashion.

The match was switched from their regular home to the 25,000-capacity Stade Charlety in south-east Paris. Leicester were greeted by a boisterous, flag-waving home support and a Stade side who forced them to defend for large swathes of the opening half.

But a woeful kicking display from Stade scrum-half Fillol and French international centre Brian Liebenburg meant the Tigers were rarely under any sustained pressure.

Fillol skewed a first-minute penalty horribly wide of the posts and set the tone for much of Stade’s first-half.

Outside-centre Geoffrey Messina collected a testing up-and-under over the shoulder of Geordan Murphy but just when the chance seemed to be opening up for Stade, with the Leicester defence broken, flanker Remy Martin spilled the ball forward.

Leicester were penalised again at the breakdown but Fillol, from the same spot, missed once again. This time his effort barely reached the try-line.

Leicester, aware they should have been 6-0 down in under 10 minutes, sought to make Stade pay dearly for their profligacy and Harry Ellis arced a superb kick over the scrum to push play deep into French territory.

Another woeful clearance awarded Leicester the lineout in a generous position and they drove forcefully for the line but when Goode straightened his run, hoping to find a chink in the Stade defence, the gap closed on him and he spilled the ball forward.

Liebenburg finally got a decent kick away – a delicate chip over the advancing Leicester defence – but he was somewhat harshly penalised for holding on.

Martin then escaped admonishment from referee Donal Courtney when, having tangled with Ellis at the base of a ruck, he checked Geordan Murphy off the ball after the Irish full-back had sent a clever grubber kick through the advancing Stade defence.

Goode missed the chance to put Leicester ahead and Fillol finally got the scoreboard moving after 24 minutes with a penalty for Stade under the posts after the Tigers had been caught off-side. It was third time lucky for Fillol, though it did little to settle Stade down into any type of rhythm.

Their best moment of the half came on the counter-attack when Mirco Bergamasco sparked the break with a jinking run into the Leicester half but Goode was on hand produced a try-saving tackle on full-back Olivier Sarramea just as he reached for the line.

Goode levelled the scores with the final act of an uninspiring first-half - and things did not get much better after the interval.

It was not until two minutes from time that Courtney finally brandished the yellow card – to Ben Kay – which was a surprise given the amount of skullduggery that was going on at the breakdown.

That made for a stop-start game that clearly suited Stade best and as Leicester struggled to escape their own half, Fillol finally found his range to boot three penalties and open a 12-3 lead with 13 minutes remaining.

Goode booted Leicester back in touch after Stade’s combative hooker Dimitri Szarzewski and Lewis Moody had become embroiled in a scuffle on the deck.

But Leicester botched two late chances to snatch the game. Murphy’s chip over the top was charged down and when Leicester then won a penalty and launched a drive from the subsequent lineout, a careless accidental offside allowed Stade to clear their lines and secure the win.