Leicester Tigers v’s Toulouse

Walkers Stadium
Att: 31,883
Sunday 24th April 2005
Kick Off: 3:30pm

So, Leicester Tigers’ first game at the Walkers ‘Crisp Bowl’ Stadium ended with Toulouse running through to the Heineken Cup Final against Stade Francaise after defeating us 27 points to 19.
Toulouse did start the better team; scoring a try through Finau Maka in just the second minute… it’s a shame the referee missed the forward pass! Scrum-half Jean-Baptiste Elissalde kept the 29,000 Tigers supported quiet with the conversion. Austin Healey took a quick penalty and gained ground before the ball was lost before being re-gathered by Neil Back and being run on by Geordan Murphy. The attack stopped short just short of the Toulouse try line. Play then stopped for the Toulouse flanker, Jean Bouilhou, who left the field and was replaced by Isitolo Maka. Tigers earned a penalty and Andy Goode converted for a Toulouse lead of 7-3 after nine minutes.
Toulouse then won a penalty shortly after from a Tigers scrum and Elissalde converted. Unfortunately for Tigers, Graham Rowntree limped off with a leg injury and was replaced by Welshman Darren Morris. Goode scored his second penalty of the game on the 25th minute, before securing his third seven minutes later, narrowing Toulouse’s half time lead to just one point. Both Elissalde and Goode missed a penalty each just before the break, leaving the score 10-9.
After the break, Tigers replaced flanker Lewis Moody with second row Ben Kay, giving them a second line-out option. With the score at just 10-9, Tigers could still go on to win but a Toulouse counter-attack by full back Clement Poitrenaud and Yannick Jauzion (who’s pass also seemed to go forward), lead to a second try through Elissalde in the 50th minute. Elissalde kicked the conversion for a 17-9 lead.
Goode then kept Tigers within distance of Toulouse with a penalty, only for Elissalde to cancel it out with a penalty of his own. Goode only just missed a penalty three minutes later.
Tigers’ head coach John Wells made changes just before 70 minutes, at No.8 and scrum half. Tigers ploughed forward but lost the ball and Toulouse punished Tigers again with their third try by Frederic Michalak; with Elissalde converting for a 27-12 lead on the 73rd minute.
Tom Varndell came on too late in the game to make any real difference, although he did claim Leicester’s only try of the day, Goode converting for a 27-19 full time score. All of Tigers’ class and experience couldn't take us to the final, and it all seemed too little too late.