Heineken Cup

This article relates to the 2005 Heinken Cup. For more up-to-date information The Heineken Cup rarely fails to excite when it gets to the semi-final stage as it has now, and there is very little reason to expect this season to be any different. Close matches are expected in both cases, something evidenced by the way that all four teams are priced between 5/2 and 7/2 to go all the way.Making their home at the top of the lists is the last surviving English team, Leicester Tigers and it is their match against Toulouse that this preview is concerned with. The winner will take on the victor from Saturday's game between Stade Francais and Biarritz in next month's final at Murrayfield. These are the two biggest clubs on the continent, and the two with the best records in the competition, the measure by which success at the highest club level is rightly judged, as the only ones to have taken this trophy more than once. Toulouse also lost through a moment of Clement Poitrenaud madness in last year's final against Wasps and so will be especially keen to make amends. They will have to do so without their skipper, Fabien Pelous, however, as the international legend picked up an injury against Bourgoin earlier this month. He is everything of a talisman as Martin Johnson is for Leicester, indeed he is arguably the one man in the world game who can be realistically compared to him. Johnson plays, but only by the skin of his teeth before facing an enquiry on Monday which is likely to lead to immediate suspension. Whilst we are on the subject on international captains, Martin Corry, the current leader of England's troops will be absent. His elbow to the face of Richard Hill last week led a committee to the conclusion that a three-week rest was in order for foul play. He would be back in time for the final. There are several ways of looking at this game. Taking a historic view, this is the third time that France have contributed three semi finalists. However, on both previous occasions, it has been the sole foreign set-up that has ultimately triumphed, namely Bath in 1998 and Ulster in 1999. Also in Leicester's corner is the statistic that says England have had just one team in the semi finals on five separate occasions, and on four of these it is them that has been crowned champions. There is an argument that says the Tigers have an uncanny knack for lifting themselves in this competition, and for this reason we should not read too much into their loss at Saracens last Sunday. After all, they followed defeat at Leeds last month with a stirring display to put paid to the challenge of Leinster for another year. Home advantage is another potential feather in the Leicester cap. The Walkers Bowl may not be Welford Road, but it is still in Leicester City Centre, and the vast majority of the 36,000 witnesses will be in the green and red. Although the Tigers have been flying high at the top of the Premiership, and advanced through the Heineken Cup, their season has been punctuated by some big losses. Two games spring to mind. The first came in Round 5 of this competition they hosted Biarritz in what appeared at the time to be an absolutely vital match. The French arrived at Welford Road and played superbly to win by 21-17. The second was last week in the Premiership, where Saracens beat them at Vicarage Road, 19-17. For us, these two games showed us the way in which to combat John Wells's side. Both the opponents had huge and strong forward packs that were able to target certain key players, and secure plenty of ball. Toulouse are dazzlingly talented, but their main strength comes behind the scrum. Few would argue that they didn't have the best back division of any club, but we do not feel they have enough ballast at the coalface to be successful in this contest, especially without Pelous. We do not prescribe to the outdated and generalised theory that says French teams can't travel, especially seeing how Biarritz have done this year. The loss at Northampton in Round 3 is also one that we would not take too much notice of in regard to this game. However, Leicester, consisting of Martin Johnson and Neil Back who will retire at the end of this campaign should have enough about them to go one stage further on their quest to become the first three time winners. They are 8/11 to do so, or backable with a -2 point handicap at 10/11. Andy Goode continues to kick sublimely and we feel the latter option is the one to take.