- Cheika’s Leicester Tigers reign got off to a winning start in the Premiership
- Leicester beat Exeter 17-14 thanks to a last-minute try from Tommy Reffell
- The Tigers went down to 14 men with just under ten minutes remaining
Eight years ago, Michael Cheika and Ange Postecoglou were sat on the sofa of a broadcast studio in Sydney discussing their ambitions to coach in England.
They had plenty in common, not least because they were both coaching Australia’s national teams in rugby and football. Mixed heritage, straight-shooters with a tendency to dive head-first towards trouble.
Postecoglou burst on to the scene at Tottenham last year, picking up 26 from 30 points in his opening 10 matches in the Premier League. Cheika has arrived 12 months later and his first day on the job was predictably dramatic.
There was a red card, a couple of expletives from the coaching box and a last-minute twist. Exeter dominated almost every attacking statistic: metres gained, carries, clean breaks, defenders beaten, passes, offloads. Yet there is no metric for the self-belief that underlined Leicester’s surge of power in the 83rd minute to snatch victory in the final play.
‘We got a few unlucky penalties but we didn’t panic — even me!’ said Cheika, a notoriously sharp critic of refereeing decisions. ‘I didn’t say too much. I stood up one time, thought about having a go and then sat back down. It was, OK, we got a bad call here — let’s just ride through it.’
Michael Cheika realised his ambitions of coaching in England by taking over at Leicester Tigers
Cheika and Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou harboured similar aspirations of overseas work – intentions that have materialised for both Australian coaches
Leicester beat Exeter in a highly dramatic Premiership season opener at Sandy Park
Cheika is rugby’s globe-trotter. Yet here he was in pig-trotter country, facing off against an opposition coach who lives on the family farm. Skipper Ollie Chessum said he has brought an ‘aura’ into training, giving the players a sense of reassurance. There were shouts of ‘Play!’ from the coaching box when Solomone Kata steamrolled over the top of Ethan Roots.
New recruit Izaia Perese was at the heart of the action. The Wallaby was like a stick of dynamite in the midfield — imposing collateral damage on his own side as well as the opposition. With the powerful ball-carrying of Jasper Wiese no longer in their armoury, Perese was the team’s primary strike runner. Their master of chaos, featuring the full range of jackals and kicks out on the full.
He gathered the loose ball when Hodge’s penalty rebounded off the post but lost possession through a wild offload as he charged out of his 22. ‘Just run f***ing hard!’ shouted Cheika in frustration. Immanuel Feyi-Waboso made yards in attack but flanker Ross Vintcent made the most incisive play of the first half, running a sharp line to get deep into Tigers territory. Perese was sin-binned for stopping a tap-and-go and the visitors scrambled desperately to hold up Scott Sio short of their line.
Cheika embraced flanker Olly Cracknell, who was at the heart of the defensive grit that kept the likes of Josh Hodge and Feyi-Waboso at bay. ‘The effort from Olly Crackell; I don’t know if anyone knows, his father passed away during the week,’ said Cheika.
‘We feel for him. I left him all week and he called me up and said that his family wanted him to play, that that’s what his dad would have wanted. That type of performance, under that strain is fantastic.’
The Chiefs were dangerous yet Jamie Shillcock kicked a drop-goal on the stroke of half-time to give Leicester an unlikely 3-0 lead. Exeter fought back through tries from Greg Fisilau and Tom Cairns.
Leicester’s belief shone through in the final quarter. ‘We looked so callow and inexperienced in the last 20 minutes,’ said Baxter. ‘It seemed like we were inviting Leicester back into the game.’
Leicester coach Cheika celebrates with Harry Wells after their win over Exeter
Leicester scrum-half Jack van Poortvliet evades a tackle against Exeter
Hanro Liebenberg scored Leicester’s first try of the Premiership season against Exeter
Hanro Liebenberg scored from a driving lineout and Leicester rallied after Kata was sent off for a head-on-head collision with Jack Yeandle. Cheika shook his head.
Freddie Steward was on the end of a high tackle and Cheika took hold of his microphone to make sure the referee knew about it. A penalty and yellow card followed and Ben Volavola kicked to the corner for the final play.
Leicester claimed the lineout, edging forward inch by inch, and Tommy Reffell emerged from the bottom of a pile of bodies with a try to clinch the first victory of the Cheika era.
