Chris Ashton is the Premier League's all-time leading scorer, but the manner in which he left was not in the script Credit: Getty Images/David Rogers Leicester Tigers 17 Harlequins 20
Chris Ashton's career should have ended differently when the Premier League's best wing was retired in what could be his last appearance in the league.
Ashton was shown a red card for a high tackle Kadan Merli, a flanker whose first-half effort saw the Harlequins ruin the party in Leicester and cement their status as this season's top scorer.
Ashton's call-up just before the break looked borderline, but the expulsion means he's almost certainly in his last Premier League game, with the semi-final next Sunday and a possible final 13 days later.
«We'll see,» what can we do and hopefully it won't be the last for him,» said Richard Wigglesworth, Leicester's interim manager. “He had a wry smile – “just me,” he said, “and that was the story of Chris. Always headlines. But we weren't good enough in the first half. Disabled in all regions.
This was not how Wigglesworth's reign on the Welford Road should have ended. While nearly 26,000 fans took to the pitch to say goodbye to the man who gave so much to both player and manager, Leicester's six-game winning streak ended with a magnificent last stand for the Harlequins. The match was almost empty, but you wouldn't have noticed it from the stamina the attendees showed when they won the Rugby Champions Cup the following season.
«You have to sympathize with Chris,» said Tabay Matson, head coach of the Harlequins. “We played for more than them and that helped. But it was a great way to finish.”
After the usual performance of “God Save the King”, the falling rain dictated that bottlenecks would be key. The first two goals — Harlequin's first penalty and Julian Montoya's second — came from shots, with Cameron Henderson in the basket for playing in the away first leg.
The Harlequins extended their lead when Marcus Smith slipped through hole and fed Merli for the first time. Smith added three more tees to close the half after Ashton saw a red.
Pollard's moulder penalty immediately after half-time closed the gap before Smith responded by giving the Harlequins a 10-point lead back. A late try by Tommy Reffell secured the finish from the stands, but Joe Marler was booked and the guests held firm from five yards, encouraging optimism for next season.
Match Details
Scoring Sequence:
strong>0-7 Penalties, 5-5 Montoya, 7-7 Pollard, 7-12 Murley, 7-14 Smith, 7-17 Smith, 10-17 Pollard, 10-20 Smith, 15-20 Reffell tries, 17-20 vs. Goppert.
Lester Tigers: M. Brown; C. Ashton, G. Porter (M. Scott, 70), D. Kelly, H. Potter; H. Pollard (J. Goppert, 65), B. Youngs (J. van Poortvliet, 51); T. West (F. van Wyck, 48), J. Montoya (c) (K. Clare, 48), D. Cole (J. Hayes, 48), H. Wells, C. Henderson (F. Carnduff, 70 ), H. Liebenberg, T. Reffell, J. Wiese (O. Cracknell 48).
Yellow card: Henderson 12.
Red card : Ashton 39.
Harlequins: David N (Lina 12); C. Merli, J. Marchand, A. Esterhuizen, J. Bassett; M. Smith, D. Care (L. Gyalthema, 63); J. Marler, S. Riley (J. Musk, 72), W. Collier, D. Lamb (J. Hammond, 72), I. Herbst, J. Kenningham (W. Trenholm, 78), W. Evans, A Dombrandt (k).
Unused substitutions: F. Baxter, W. Hobson, L. Northmore.
Yellow card: Marler 80
Referee: Ian Tempest.
Attendance :25,849.
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