Cheika to bow out as Leicester boss with Premiership final
The Tigers will now take on Bath in a Twickenham showpiece on June 14 in a final that sees the two fallen giants of the English game looking to recapture former glories.
Leicester will be chasing a record-extending 12th league title against six-time champions Bath, bidding for a trophy treble after already winning the Premiership Rugby Cup and European Challenge Cup this season.
Veteran coach Cheika signed a one-year deal with Leicester before the start of the current campaign but the 58-year-old Australian said in January that talks about his future had been pushed back following a humiliating 80-12 defeat by Toulouse in the European Champions Cup.
And it was in January that Leicester confirmed the former Wallabies and Argentina coach would not be extending his stay at Welford Road.
But he now has the chance to finish his time with the Midlands side on a high after an ideal home send-off for retiring club greats Dan Cole and Ben Youngs, as well as the departing Handre Pollard and Julian Montoya.
'Hung strong'
"You get nervous but you do enjoy it," Cheika told TNT Sports. "There's part of you inside that loves that tight battle.
"I thought we played really good today and we still couldn't get away from them (Sale), which shows how good they were.
"They lifted their game, we didn't drop, but we didn't lift our game to go with them -- but we hung strong at the end."
Radwan struck twice in the first half as Leicester surged into a 13-3 lead.
Sale fought back to draw level before replacement Izaia Perese sprinted over to secure Leicester's place in the final against table-toppers Bath, who defeated southwest rivals Bristol 34-20 in Friday's first semi-final.
Leicester opened the scoring on Saturday in the 20th minute when Jack van Poortvliet's long pass found dashing right wing Radwan, who stepped inside three covering defenders before sprinting clear and scoring with an acrobatic dive.
Eight minutes later, Radwan had his second try when the two-cap England back's speed and agility made amends for a rare over-hit by Springbok star Pollard for a fine score.
Sale reduced their 10-point interval deficit thanks to a George Ford penalty before Pollard missed his third shot at goal in four attempts before landing his fifth.
Rob du Preez's try and a long-range penalty from England veteran Ford helped Sale level the scores at 16-16 with 14 minutes left.
But a powerful driving maul saw the ball released to Perese, whose clever running line and sheer speed swept him over Sale's try-line.
Sale, with the Curry twins Tom and Ben impressing before leaving the field, pressed hard for another try but Leicester's defence held firm.
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France 24
3 hours ago
- France 24
No let-up for Leicester boss Cheika as Premiership final exit looms
The Tigers will face old foes Bath at the headquarters of English rugby on June 14 after two fine tries by wing Adam Radwan helped them edge past Sale to spark joyful scenes come the final whistle at Welford Road in what was the last Leicester home game for retiring stalwarts Ben Youngs and Dan Cole. But for veteran Australian coach Cheika, who has overseen a revival in fallen English giants Leicester's fortunes since signing a one-year deal before the start of the season, there is still much to do ahead of what will be his last game in charge of the Tigers. "This is not an achievement for me –- winning it (the Premiership) is the achievement," said Cheika, previously in charge of both Australia and Argentina at Test level. The 58-year-old, who steered his native Australia to the 2015 Rugby World Cup final at Twickenham only for the Wallabies to go down 34-17 to New Zealand, added: "I don't want to be a sad sack, but I can't leave any room for complacency around how well we've done to make it (to the final). "I've been doing this for too long. You get to a World Cup final, you think about how good that is and then when you lose, it's the worst feeling you'll ever have. 'I want to make sure that I leave no room in my own personal performance to allow anything to derail our preparation." Radwan's two tries were the standout moments from Saturday's semi-final, the 27-year-old England wing evading several Sale defenders for his first score before he crossed Sale's line again after athletically catching an overhit chip from Springbok star Handre Pollard. Cheika, reflecting on Radwan's second try, said: "Adam grew about a foot, I reckon. A foot and a half! He's not the tallest of fellas, Adam, but he got there." He added: "You've got to be brave to go and do that stuff and if you don't try it, you never know if it'll happen or not. I'm not going to rap him (Radwan) up too much, but it was a good try.
France 24
4 hours ago
- France 24
Cheika to bow out as Leicester boss with Premiership final
The Tigers will now take on Bath in a Twickenham showpiece on June 14 in a final that sees the two fallen giants of the English game looking to recapture former glories. Leicester will be chasing a record-extending 12th league title against six-time champions Bath, bidding for a trophy treble after already winning the Premiership Rugby Cup and European Challenge Cup this season. Veteran coach Cheika signed a one-year deal with Leicester before the start of the current campaign but the 58-year-old Australian said in January that talks about his future had been pushed back following a humiliating 80-12 defeat by Toulouse in the European Champions Cup. And it was in January that Leicester confirmed the former Wallabies and Argentina coach would not be extending his stay at Welford Road. But he now has the chance to finish his time with the Midlands side on a high after an ideal home send-off for retiring club greats Dan Cole and Ben Youngs, as well as the departing Handre Pollard and Julian Montoya. 'Hung strong' "You get nervous but you do enjoy it," Cheika told TNT Sports. "There's part of you inside that loves that tight battle. "I thought we played really good today and we still couldn't get away from them (Sale), which shows how good they were. "They lifted their game, we didn't drop, but we didn't lift our game to go with them -- but we hung strong at the end." Radwan struck twice in the first half as Leicester surged into a 13-3 lead. Sale fought back to draw level before replacement Izaia Perese sprinted over to secure Leicester's place in the final against table-toppers Bath, who defeated southwest rivals Bristol 34-20 in Friday's first semi-final. Leicester opened the scoring on Saturday in the 20th minute when Jack van Poortvliet's long pass found dashing right wing Radwan, who stepped inside three covering defenders before sprinting clear and scoring with an acrobatic dive. Eight minutes later, Radwan had his second try when the two-cap England back's speed and agility made amends for a rare over-hit by Springbok star Pollard for a fine score. Sale reduced their 10-point interval deficit thanks to a George Ford penalty before Pollard missed his third shot at goal in four attempts before landing his fifth. Rob du Preez's try and a long-range penalty from England veteran Ford helped Sale level the scores at 16-16 with 14 minutes left. But a powerful driving maul saw the ball released to Perese, whose clever running line and sheer speed swept him over Sale's try-line. Sale, with the Curry twins Tom and Ben impressing before leaving the field, pressed hard for another try but Leicester's defence held firm.
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6 hours ago
- France 24
Lambourn delivers O'Brien record-extending 11th Epsom Derby
For O'Brien it completed an extraordinary two days as Minnie Hauk won the Oaks on Friday and his Jan Brueghel won the other Group One race, the Coronation Cup. It is not the first time the 55-year-old has achieved the Oaks/Derby double, last doing it in 2020 with Love (Oaks) and Serpentine who like Saturday's winner also made all to win. "It's been an incredible two days, I am delighted," said O'Brien after in his usual generous fashion he had rattled off a whole series of people who should share in the glory. "This horse is: uncomplicated, genuine and committed. He always has been." Jockey Wayne Lordan was never challenged in winning his first Derby on his ninth ride in the race considered to be the 'blue riband' of flat racing. Lordan's career was in doubt a couple of years ago after a dreadful fall in the Irish Derby in which he suffered a fractured leg and elbow and was out of action for eight months. "I had to go through a whole series of tests," he told English broadcaster ITV. "I finally got the green light, but it was rather an odd way to tell me I could ride again. "He said you are fit enough to take another fall. I knew if I had another fall it would the end of my career." 'Very disappointing' Saturday, though, represented his biggest ever victory, although it came in front of what looked to be a disappointing crowd, a smattering of spectators populating the normally packed Epsom Hill on the inside of the track. For Lordan -- "a great fella" opined O'Brien -- that mattered not a jot. "It's one of the greatest races," said the 43-year-old. "For any jockey that wants to start out, all they ever want to do is win the Derby and I work for Aidan, Ballydoyle, Coolmore so I'm in a lucky position that I get to ask a horse like this." None of the other fancied horses landed a blow and it was two outsiders that were closest at the finish -- Lazy Griff (50/1) was second with 28/1 chance Tennessee Stud, trained by O'Brien's son Joseph, third. "I knew I'd gone a good gallop, his ears were pricked and I knew he had plenty left," said Lordan. "He's a horse that we've always felt stays well so I just thought anybody that gets to me will have to stay well and it'd be tough for them." Lambourn more than made up for O'Brien's hugely disappointing race favourite, Delacroix. He was in the middle of the 18-runner field initially but as they turned for home he was third from last, his jockey Ryan Moore telling O'Brien he had been bumped and never recovered from the impact. He eventually finished ninth. There had been hopes that the Aga Khan Stud-owned Midak would deliver a poignant win in a race named this year in honour of the late Aga Khan IV, who won the race five times. However, although he raced in fourth for a long way when the moment came for jockey Mickael Barzalona to move up a gear on the French runner he went into reverse and finished 10th. They at least got their chance to run, another of the favourites Ruling Court was pulled out less than two hours before the race. It dashed hopes of him becoming the first colt (male horse) since Nijinsky in 1970 to win the classic Triple Crown -- the oldest classic St Leger in September the final leg. "It's very disappointing," trainer Charlie Appleby told ITV. "Stamina was an unknown for us and we felt that what we saw in the Guineas on quick ground and the way he quickened that day, it was not going to be the ground for him today to be testing him over a mile and a half." © 2025 AFP
