Leicester hauled their European campaign back on track last night thanks to a first-half display ranked among their most commanding in a decade of Heineken Cup away-days. For the time being they are back in contention in Pool Four and their visit to the champions Munster next month is suddenly relevant again.
Despite miserable wet overhead conditions and a soaking pitch, the Tigers had the match won by the interval when they led 28-3 but could end up regretting their failure to secure a try bonus point. It did not help that three players, including the captain Martin Corry, were sin-binned in the final quarter and the Tigers finished the game with only 13 men on the field.
Even so it was a welcome change in fortune for several of the Tigers' England contingent after a depressing autumn. Corry scored an important first-half try and played a prominent role in a forward effort. Behind him, the half-backs Harry Ellis and man of the match Andy Goode had productive nights, albeit against opponents offering only a sporadic threat.
Bourgoin had lost their previous six encounters with English clubs and have long had much the same regard for Heineken Cup rugby as Pete Doherty has for a quiet night in. They were quickly behind to a Goode penalty and, in conditions which played into the hands of the Leicester pack, were under the cosh almost from the outset.
Only a loss of control at a close-range scrum prevented the Tigers from capitalising on an extended period of forward pressure but Bourgoin's reprieve was temporary. Goode popped up on the right to take a short pass from Sam Vesty, barrelled past the tentative Jean-François Coux and threw an inside ball to Geordan Murphy, which looked to have floated forward. But there was no whistle and Murphy slithered over to score.
With Ellis looking more alert than for a while and the forwards clearly under no illusions about the game's importance, it afforded Corry's team a secure platform which Bourgoin could only dream about. From early on the captain required a large bandage for a head wound and the Terry Butcher-esque red stain merely added to the mood of Tiger defiance.
So it proved as two more Goode penalties extended the lead and Bourgoin lost their openside flanker Mark Rennie to the sin-bin for attempted ball-killing. Further neat interpassing between forwards and backs resulted in a 35th-minute try for Tom Varndell which typified the way the game was going. On another day Benjamin Boyet's strong cover tackle would have knocked the winger into touch but this time his trailing foot was a millimetre or two the right side of the touchline as he stretched for the touchdown.
Even better was to follow in the final moments of the first half. Ellis made yet another smart break around the back of a ruck and set up the lurking Corry inside him for a free gallop to the line. Given the events of the past month, the broad smile on Corry's battered features was the image of the night.
The second half was rather less memorable as Bourgoin belatedly decided to go down with at least the odd pop-gun blazing. The replacement hooker Benoît Cabello and Coux, almost on the final whistle, slithered over for tries with the Tigers, depleted in numbers, pinned in their own half and any thoughts of a bonus point swiftly became impractical.
Bourgoin: Laloo; Nicolas, Bousses, Coetzee (Davis, 66), Coux; Boyet, Parra (Prendagast, 64); Milloud (Khinchagishvili, 78), Vigneaux (Cabello, 62), Sourgens (Cardinali, h-t), Del Fava, Williams, Bonnaire (capt; Jooste, 75), Rennie, Monzeglio.
Tries: Cabello, Coux. Pen Boyet.
Sin-bin: Rennie, 27.
Leicester: Vesty (Cornwell, 62); G Murphy, Hipkiss, Gibson, Varndell (J Murphy, 60); Goode, Ellis; Ayerza (Moreno, 52), Chuter, Castrogiovanni, Cullen, L Deacon (Hamilton, 64), Moody, Jennings (B Deacon, 70), Corry (capt).
Tries: G Murphy, Varndell, Corry. Cons Goode 2. Pens Goode 3.
Sin-bin: Corry, 72; B Deacon, 77; Goode, 80.
Referee: D Courtney (Ireland). Att 6,500.
