Leicester head coach Heyneke Meyer has paid tribute to Lewis Moody's comeback performance during his side's 30-21 win over Sale.
Leicester coach delighted with flanker's comeback performance
Leicester head coach Heyneke Meyer has paid tribute to Lewis Moody's comeback performance during his side's 30-21 win over Sale.
Moody, 30, made a return to rugby on Friday after a nine month lay-off following Achilles tendon and hip surgery.
After reaching two successive finals, Meyer admitted he was disappointed with his side's EDF Energy Cup exit - Cardiff secured a semi-final place ahead of the Tigers with victory over Bath.
But the coach said he was delighted with his World Cup-winning flanker, who was last seen limping off during England's Six Nations defeat by Wales at Twickenham in February.
"I think Lewis did well," he said. "He stole a few good balls and his defence was great.
"For a guy that has not played for so long, he really played well.
"I think he needs two or three games to be back to his best but you saw tonight he is always at a very high standard.
Unacceptable
Meyer however, admitted that his men had made hard work of the victory after watching their 13-0 half-time lead eroded by a second-string Sale side.
"Our first priorities are the Premiership and the Heineken Cup but we want to win every single trophy," He added.
"It was always going to be tough to have two away games and one at home.
"I thought we lost our composure after half-time, which was unacceptable.
"There were a lot of new guys in there but we can play a lot better. It was a tougher game than we needed."
Despite three EDF defeats, Sale boss Philippe Saint-Andre, who had handed debuts to 12 of his players during their campaign, insisted there were still positives to be taken.
Mistakes
He said: "We had a lot of young players in the EDF and I think they learned a lot. I am proud because we did not lose by 50 points, it was a good game.
"There were some silly mistakes but that's the only way they will learn and some of these guys will be pushing for a place in the 22 against Gloucester.
"We only have 31 full-time players so we need to find some talents.
"I would prefer the competition during November or in the Six Nations so I can have all my players but we decided to develop our players in this competition."
