Thanks to Tim Perkins for this Article.
Round 17
Leicester Tigers returned to winning ways at Welford Road as they beat NEC Harlequins, coached by former Leicester legend Dean Richards.
A capacity crowd chanted the name of their former hero, but the Tigers were in less charitable mood on the pitch. All the tries came in the second half, with Rabeni and Hipkiss scoring for Leicester to build on the 9-6 lead they held at half time. Rabeni's effort was confirmed by the television match official, the replay showing the Fijian had managed to touch the ball down on the very edge of the try line. A score from Jordan Turner-Hall and a last minute penalty from Adrian Jarvis secured a bonus point for Quins.
The win kept Leicester on top of the table, but their fortunes were in stark contrast to those of long time leaders Bristol Rugby, who suffered a 28-0 whitewash at Adams Park. Coach Shaun Edwards admitted the performance from the home team was one of the best he had seen in his time at the club. Tries from Josh Lewsey, Eoin Reddan and David Doherty left visiting coach Richard Hill grateful that better weather had not led to a heavier defeat for his side.
Follow up:
After their victory at Welford Road last weekend, Northampton Saints had the chance to increase the gap between them and Worcester at the foot of the table. A pre-match deluge made conditions tricky, but England U21 hooker Dylan Hartley got things off to a good start as he was shoved over for an unconverted try after only five minutes against Gloucester.
Neither side troubled the scorer further until Anthony Allen's break nine minutes from time set James Simpson-Daniel up for a try which substitute Willie Walker converted from the touchline to win the match and keep Gloucester in third place.
The form guide would have predicted victory for Saracens over Sale Sharks and that was the way things transpired at Vicarage Road, with Glen Jackson grabbing 17 of his side's 22 points, the try coming from centre Adam Powell. Sale's points came from the boot of their fly halves, six from Lee Thomas and three from his replacement Rhys Jones.
Worcester Warriors recorded a win at home to Bath Rugby to keep their hopes of survival alive. Former South African international Thinus Delport was the hero for the home side with two tries in their 21-15 win, the other points coming from the boot of Shane Drahm. The win takes Worcester to within four points of Northampton Saints.
London Irish recorded a comfortable win in front over 10,000 supporters at the Madejski Stadium, beating Newcastle Falcons 38-12. Newcastle's fly half Jonny Wilkinson was helped from the field by London Irish's mascot, Digger, with what looked like cramp, but Exiles young fly half Shane Geraghty took centre stage, running the match with some aplomb and grabbing 23 points in the process. A try bonus point was secured as the youngster crossed twice to add to scores from Sailala Mapusua, Robbie Russell and Tonga Lea'aetoa.
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