Bath Rugby v Leicester Tigers Premiership Preview
Written 24th January 2020
Leicester Tigers are back in Gallagher Premiership action on Saturday after a few weeks out for European Challenge Cup competition. It will be a welcome return too as the Premiership has always been seen as the bread and butter for English Rugby clubs. The task facing the Tigers is a trip to The Rec to take on Bath, who sit 6th in the Gallagher Premiership table with four wins from eight games.
Geordan Murphy’s Tigers side are 11th in the league table, though recent domestic performances definitely seem to be pointing in the right direction. This includes their last outing, a 31-18 victory over Bristol Bears at Welford Road in front of a jubulant 19,807 fans at Welford Road back on 4th January.
It has been a busy week for Leicester, announcing that Steve Borthwick is set to join the club as Head Coach with Geordan Murphy heading upstairs to a Director of Rugby role, once Borthwick’s England duties have come to an end.
Bath Rugby v Leicester Tigers
25th January 2020
Where: The Rec
When: Kick Off 3pm
Referee: Wayne Barnes
Assistant Referees: Christophe Ridley & Paul Dix
TMO: David Grashoff
Word From The Tigers Camp - Greg Bateman
LeoVegas were delighted to speak exclusively to Leicester Tigers player Greg Bateman ahead of Saturday’s game at Bath. Here is what he had to say:
LV: 2020 has started brilliantly for the Tigers, what would you put the upturn in fortune down to?
GB: True competition is what breeds that performance environment and the quality of the squad we have has got better over the last couple of years, so I think we’re in a pretty good spot. I think that’s the only way that you can keep up that good performance– if you’ve got lads chomping at the bit for your space and you’re chomping at the bit for somebody else’s.
LV: Would you say chasing down a 14 point deficit against Harlequins at Twickenham gave the squad the confidence to go on a winning run?
GB: Partly, yes, but that drive to win also only comes from really caring for the people either side of you. We went to hell and back in pre-season together and we want to put the performances together to show that. We’ve been through that tough, gritty grind together, and lads are constantly putting their hands up and wanting to get involved.
LV: What kind of test do you think Bath will offer on Saturday?
GB: It’s going to be a big job for the pack, as Bath pride themselves on their ability in the scrum and the driving maul, but so do we. We’re really looking forward to a decent arm wrestle down at The Rec.
Leicester Tigers Form
LDWWL
Looking back to late December, Leicester Tigers started their run of the last five games in all competitions with a hard-fought effort in defeat at home to Exeter Chiefs. This was then followed up with arguably the pick of the performances, as the Tigers fought back from a 14 point deficit away at Harlequins to claim a 30-30 draw. Then came the win over Bristol, followed up by a win and a defeat in the European Challenge Cup, against Cardiff Blues and PAU respectively.
Last Time Out
As mentioned, the last run out in the Gallagher Premiership came at Welford Road against Bristol Bears. Jonny May was undoubtedly the star of the show, scoring two tries in the match. The England stars returning to the fold was most welcome for Geordan Murphy, as George Ford was also there to score a try as well as four conversions and a penalty. Ellis Genge also got himself on the scoresheet in a convincing win with the addition of a bonus point.
Head To Head - Leicester Tigers and Bath Rugby
Bath have been somewhat of a bogey team for Leicester in the last couple of domestic league seasons.
Last 5 Premiership Games:
Leicester Tigers Wins: 1
Bath Rugby Wins: 4
The Tigers will certainly be out for revenge on Saturday.
Current Rugby Betting Odds
In terms of the Leicester Tigers betting odds for the match, Leicester Tigers are the outsiders due to the current league table and the fact that Bath are the home side for the contest.
Leicester Tigers To Win: 17/10
The Regular Time Market has the “Dead Heat” rule applied, which has online betting odds divided by 2 in case of a draw.
The Regular Time 3-Way market has a separate option for the draw.
Here at LeoVegas, we also offer handicap markets for the match too.
This market means that Leicester Tigers will theoretically begin the game with a 5.5 point advantage, and this the bet would pay out as a winner if the Tigers either win the game or come within less than 6 points in a losing effort.
Keep an eye on the LeoVegas Sports blog throughout the rest of the season, as we bring you all of the Rugby betting tips and previews for each Leicester Tigers match.
LeoVegas, proud partners of Leicester Tigers.
*All odds correct at the time of writing.