Aviva Premiership: Saracens v Leicester full-time report

Geordan Murphy

Saracens 19 Leicester 20

Added time and everything was going well enough for Saracens.

The fortress that their Vicarage Road ground had become had held out for 80 minutes against all that Leicester had to throw at them and Sarries were going to keep the pressure on Harlequins at the top of the Aviva Premiership.

And then, bang, Geordan Murphy nailed a drop goal that turned 19-17 into 19-20. Match lost and along with it and unbeaten home record that stretched back to defeat by Exeter in October 2010. But it was something special that beat them.

Leicester led 12-10 at half time through four penalties from Toby Flood with Saracens scoring the only try by Schalk Brits, which Goode converted and added to with a penalty. Goode scored two more penalties after the break to give the reigning champions the lead once again, only for Ed Slater’s try on the hour-mark set up the grandstand denouement.

That seemed unlikely when Goode hit his 76th minute penalty but, after taking the ball through 26 phases just metres from the Sarries line, Murphy struck the winning points.

Richard Cockerill, the Leicester coach, admitted that he thought this was a match that may have got away. "I was desperate for the lads to go for the drop - probably about 14 times before Geordan finally delivered. And I think it was apt that he should score the winner,” he said to premiershiprugby.com.

"It was Geordan who sat the players down in midweek and told them what is expected of Leicester players after last week's performance. He then made the call to take the drop-goal and did what all great Leicester players do, he led from the front.

"We could easily have lost - it felt like the Twickenham final, phase after phase - only this time we got the rub of the green, this time we achieved a very good win against a very good side."

Paul Wheeler

Follow us on Facebook

Follow our Bettor rugby union updates on twitter