Tigers grind out victory

Smith: Try sealed victory for Leicester

Leicester maintained their unbeaten Pool Four record with a 20-9 victory over Ulster in the Heineken Cup at Welford Road.

A 67th minute try from centre Matt Smith proved the clincher for Tigers while Toby Flood added five penalties in a gritty display from the hosts.

Ian Humphreys replied with three first-half penalties for Ulster, who competed well for long periods but ultimately found the Aviva Premiership outfit too strong.

The Irish province looked more than capable of causing an upset and will be disappointed not to have come away with at least a deserved bonus point.

They took a second minute lead when Humphreys kicked a 55 metre penalty as the Tigers were penalised for offside following a poor up and under from Geordan Murphy.

The visitors continued to have the better of the opening exchanges but when Chris Henry was penalised for not releasing, Flood levelled the scores from 50 metres.

Within minutes Ulster were back ahead with another penalty from Humphreys and remained so as Flood missed with his next attempt. However, this setback was the forerunner for Leicester to produce the first sustained period of pressure.

Disruption

The Ulster defence was softened up by some good driving runs from Thomas Waldrom and Marcos Ayerza resulting in a Leicester penalty which Flood converted.

But neither side was able to produce any continuity to their play with constant disruption due to penalty awards.

Humphreys made it 9-6 after 20 minutes with another sweetly struck kick but once again Flood tied the scores after the Irish were penalised at a scrum.

The Ulster pack were meeting the Tigers head on with halfbacks Paul Marshall and Humphreys kicking astutely to pin back the hosts.

Roman Poite's whistle continued to be the dominant feature of a desperately poor first half which was briefly enlivened by one powerful run from Alesana Tuilagi, who was the first to threaten the try line.

The wing was hauled down by the combined efforts of Andrew Trimble and Simon Danielli and when Flood booted the ball into touch the half-time whistle was met with a chorus of boos.

Ulster on top

The boos continued into the second half when early on Nevin Spence was penalised for taking Murphy as he was airborne. There was little in it but a penalty was awarded which secured a platform for the Tigers.

Flood's penalty put his side ahead for the first time in the match but it should have been shortlived, Humphreys surprisingly missing with by far his easiest kick.

An excellent kick and chase from the lively Marshall was the prelude for Ulster's best period of the match and a couple of strong runs from Darren Cave put the Tigers' line under threat.

But the home defence held firm and a penalty for not releasing relieved the pressure. Ben Youngs was introduced in an attempt to put some spark into the Tigers' game but the visitors looked the more likely try scorers as the game entered the final quarter.

However, Leicester raised their game to score the crucial try with 12 minutes to go. From a ruck inside the Ulster 22, Flood gained possession to put in a clever grubber kick and Smith won the race for the touchdown.

Then with the final kick of the match the outside half was successful with his fifth penalty.