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Leicester Tigers player ratings vs Toulouse | Investec Champions Cup
By Ian Cameron
Leicester Tigers player ratings: Michael Cheika’s side suffered a crushing 80-12 defeat to defending Investec Champions Cup champions Toulouse at Stade Ernest-Wallon.
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Barring a try a piece for Jack van Poortvliet and Will Hurd, the Tigers were comprehensively outplayed in nearly every facet of the game.
Here are the player ratings:
1. Nicky Smith – 6
Scrummaged decently but made little impact elsewhere.
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2. Julian Montoya – 5.5
Worked tirelessly as always, but his usual physicality couldn’t stem the Toulouse onslaught.
3. Joe Heyes – 6
Solid in the scrum but offered little resistance defensively against a rampant Toulouse pack.
4. Cameron Henderson – 4
Missed too many tackles and struggled to keep pace with Toulouse’s dynamic forwards. A steep learning curve for Scottish lock.
5. George Martin – 5
Put in some effort in defence but was overshadowed by Toulouse’s sheer physicality and their dynamism.
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6. Ollie Chessum – 5
As with Martin, had his moments (in the lineouts particularly) but was ulitmately outgunned before being subbed early.
7. Tommy Reffell – 6.5
Tackled ferociously throughout, showing immense work rate even as the game slipped away, even if Tom Willis was the best back row on the pitch.
8. Olly Cracknell – 6
Carried well and worked hard in the tight exchanges, one of Tigers’ better forwards on a difficult day.
9. Jack van Poortvliet – 7
Scored Leicester’s first try with a smart sniping effort and tried to inject some tempo into a misfiring attack. A tough ask with Leicester pack on the back foot.
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10. Handré Pollard – 5
The Bok maestro failed to impose his usual control on the game before being replaced at halftime.
11. Ollie Hassell-Collins – 5
Barely saw the ball and was unable to make an impact when he did.
12. Dan Kelly – 6.5
Showed some promise with several strong breaks in midfield, a rare positive in the Tigers’ backline.
13. Izaia Perese – 4
A defensive liability. Pulled left and right by wave after wave of Toulouse attacks, Perese struggled throughout and compounded his poor day with a sin-binning.
14. Josh Bassett – 5
Limited opportunities to contribute and was left chasing shadows all afternoon.
15. Freddie Steward – 4.5
Although too often left in impossible positions, it was something of a nightmare outing for the fullback, riddled with unforced errors and missed tackles. He carried well when he had the chance but he just couldn’t handle Ange Capuozzo and co’s blitzkrieg attack.
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16. Charlie Clare – NA
Not on long enough to rate.
17. James Whitcombe – 5
A decent shift in the scrum but offered little around the park.
18. Will Hurd – 7
Scored a morale-boosting try off the bench.
19. Harry Wells – 5
Made little impression after coming on with just 13 minutes left on the clock.
20. Emeka Ilione – 5
Tried to make an impact in the loose but was just more cannon fodder for Toulouse.
21. Tom Whiteley – 6
Brought on to freshen up the attack and his two offloads suggest he at least made an attempt to do that.
22. Jamie Shillcock – 5
Converted van Poortvliet’s try but couldn’t provide the spark needed to turn the tide.
23. Solomone Kata – 6
Had one powerful run disallowed due to an infringement by Perese. Not the worst, with an impressive 0.44 carries per minute across his forty minutes.
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How can any of them score above 5?
That's pretty generous for a team made up of mostly internationals who just shipped 80.
Despite plaudits for Cheika, Tigers continue to be a side who simply can't string together 80 mins of competitive rugby which is OK if your playing Exeter, but plainly not when playing Toulouse.
With Cheika allegedly heading for the exit and Graham rowntree heading back to welford Rd, Tigers search for stability and their true identity continues apace.