ON THIS DAY: CROSS BAR, POST, DEVASTATION

“We’re just devastated – there are no words to describe this feeling. We’ve got to regroup and pull ourselves together and remember we’ve got other things to play for.”

That’s how Llanelli coach Gareth Jenkins described the aftermath of his side’s Heineken Cup semi-final defeat to Leicester Tigers on Sunday, 28 April, 2002.

They say that things comes in ‘threes’ and for Llanelli there was a hat-trick of calamitous exits from the top European tournament Cup in the space of four seasons.

• First it was the 31-28 semi-final defeat to Northampton Saints in Reading, when a last gasp kick from 50 metres out by Paul Grayson snatched victory from the jaws of defeat for the eventual champions.
• A year later at Kingsholm it was a drop goal from Elton Moncrieff that went over the posts via Phil Booth’s back that did for the Scarlets. That lucky strike, two minutes from time, earned Gloucester a 28-27 victory and allowed them to win Pool 5 by a single point.
• Poor old Llanelli won their final game against Colomiers 34-21, but missed out on the quarter-finals by a single try to Pau after four second placed teams ended up on eight points.
• Third time lucky, then, against Leicester Tigers at Nottingham’s City Ground in the 2002 semi-final? Not a bit of it!

Llanelli led 12-10 with two minutes to go before receiving a massive kick in the teeth – via the cross bar and the upright.

There had been 9,685 at the Madejski Stadium in 2000, a full house of 10,800 at Kingsholm a year later and there were a UK record 29,849 packed in at the home of Nottingham Forest for one of those never-to-be-forgotten European rugby moments.

HOW DID THEY GET THERE

Martin Johnson’s Tigers had been finalists in 1997, quarter-finalists the next year and become champions in 2000 in spectacular fashion by beating Stade Francais 34-30 in Paris. In 2001/02 they found themselves drawn in the same pool as Llanelli and had to open their title defence against them at Welford Road.

It was a sign of things to come as they were made to struggle before winning 12-9. That put the Welsh club on the back foot from the start and it didn’t help their cause that they also had the crack French side Perpignan in their pool.

Everyone made hay against Calvisano, with Matt Cardey running in what is still a tournament record five tries in the 93-14 home win over the Italians, but Leicester stayed on course for a successful defence by completing the double over Perpignan.

Tim Stimpson (there’s more of him to come) kicked 23 points to secure a 31-30 victory in a game that included 43 penalties from the whistle of Italian referee Giulio de Santis and nine penalties and a drop goal for the home side from Thierry Lacroix.

Llanelli managed to tame the Frenchman at home, winning 20-6, but couldn’t hold their nerve in the bear-pit atmosphere of Stade Aime Giral, going down to a 42-10 defeat. That left them with a mountain to climb in Round 6.

By that stage the Tigers had extended their winning run in Europe to a record 11 matches and headed to Stradey Park knowing that the pool was already theirs and that they would be going through to the quarter-finals.

But what was at stake was that winning run, a home quarter-final and the chance to erase the memory of defeats on their two previous European trips to Wales – a 28-9 rout by Brive in the 1997 final in Cardiff and an 18-11 reverse at Sardis Road against Pontypridd the previous season.

More than 10,000 fans packed into Llanelli’s renowned rugby cathedral to watch Scott Quinnell’s side battle for the right to go through to the know-out stages and remain among Europe’s elite. Everything was on the line for them and it was an occasion to rival any played against a touring side in the past. Rob Kitson, writing in The Guardian, said;

“. . . Stradey Park, scene of an expertly engineered, rousingly sprung Tiger trap that hoisted Llanelli into the last eight and reminded everyone that hypnotic rugby occasions do not necessarily require tries.

Only Limerick’s Thomond Park has such a haunting feel to it, the sensation of almost mystical forces at work when the ground is full and the local heroes are on a mission. This time, instead of the Munster forwards grinding out the yards and Ronan O’Gara kicking the goals, Leicester were victims of a subtly different Celtic ambush, a Gone with the Wind production starring the Scarlets’ O’Gara, Stephen Jones, whose eight penalties rewarded the massive efforts of his pack.

If anyone underestimates what Stradey Park does to you mentally, I think today proved it,” said the Llanelli coach Gareth Jenkins, whose side have lost only twice at home in Europe in 18 games.

What we had to get right today was our minds, our hearts and our souls. These occasions aren’t won with rugby ability. They’re won in the spirit and passion stakes.”

Or as the indomitable Scott Quinnell put it simply: “How can you not perform in front of a crowd like that?”

In a battle of the boots, Stephen Jones kicked eight penalties to Andy Goode’s four and Llanelli won 24-12. That was enough to earn them the final ticket into the quarter-finals and a trip to The Recreation Ground to meet the only unbeaten team in the pool stages, Bath.

Leicester had to host Leinster and went through on the back of a convincing 29-18 triumph. Jones was once again the star for Llanelli in the quarter-final, kicking eight penalties and a conversion to take his season’s tally through the 100 points barrier for the second time in his career.

That set-up the deciding game against the Tigers in Nottingham on Sunday, 28 April, 2002.

LEICESTER TIGERS 13 – 12 LLANELLI

Munster beat Castres Olympique in Beziers in the opening semi-final on Saturday, 27 April to secure a place in their second final. The following day all eyes switched to the City Ground in Nottingham. It was the first time a non-rugby venue had been used for a Heineken Cup semi-final and the fans of both sides played a huge part in turning the occasion into one of the greatest in the history of the tournament.

Scott Quinnell on the charge

The pre-match press conference in the build-up to the game earlier in the week had seen the Leicester contingent drive the 28 miles in less than an hour, while Llanelli coach Gareth Jenkins, captain Scott Quinnell and team manger Anthony Buchanan took to the air after training as they were flown from Stradey Park to the Midlands by helicopter.

As the pilot landed in the middle of the pitch at the City Ground everyone got the impression that what was about to unfold at the weekend was going to be rather special. Indeed it was!

Leicester: Tim Stimpson; Geordan Murphy, Oli Smith, Rod Kafer, Freddie Tuilagi (Leon Lloyd 71); Austin Healey, Harry Ellis (Jamie Hamilton 64); Graham Rowntree, Dorian West, Darren Garforth, Martin Johnson (captain), Ben Kay, Lewis Moody, Neil Back, Martin Corry
Scorers: Try: H Ellis; Con: T Stimpson; Pens: T Stimpson 2

Llanelli: Garan Evans (Wayne Proctor 71); Mark Jones, Neil Boobyer, Leigh Davies, Salesi Finau; Stephen Jones, Guy Easterby; Martyn Madden, Robin McBryde, John Davies, Vernon Cooper, Chris Wyatt (Luke Gross 72), Dave Hodges, Simon Easterby (Ian Boobyer 72), Scott Quinnell (captain)
Scorer: Pens: S Jones 4

Referee: Dave McHugh (Ireland)

The Guardian described the game as “achingly tense” and claimed “Tim Stimpson will never kick another penalty as outlandish as the last-minute match-winning effort from five metres inside his own half which bounced off both crossbar and post before it crept over”.

“He struck it well enough, as he had to, but it was dipping when it struck the bar and required a hefty nudge from the left-hand upright to help it over. On such fateful bounces do entire careers hinge.”

Harry Ellis broke clear to score the first, and only, try in three meetings between the two teams in Europe that season three minutes into the second half, but when Jones landed his fourth penalty of a game played on a wet pitch and in a swirling wind it was Llanelli who led 12-10 after 54 minutes.

Stimpson had converted the Ellis try and also landed a penalty, while Jones had been wide with two other attempts.

‘58 METRES BETWEEN TIM STIMPSON AND GLORY’

The commentary from Nick Mullins said it all – ’58 metres between Tim Stimpson and glory’. Irish referee Dave McHugh had penalised Llanelli loose head prop Martyn Madden for turning in at a Leicester put-in to a scrum two metres inside their own half. It seemed too far for anyone to aim for goal.

But Stimpson had already revealed his goalkicking credentials in the past. He was the top points scorer on the 1997 British & Irish Lions tour with 111 and it was his 19 points in the 2001 final that earned the Tigers’ their first title – and took his season’s tally in Europe to 152.

His 23 points in Perpignan had been followed by 29 in the return game and he had already converted that Ellis try and kicked a penalty before he stepped up to shoot for glory in Nottingham with only two minutes left on the clock.

“I knew it was potentially kickable because I’d been up to the City Ground in the week and had kicked balls from a similar place,” recalled Stimpson.

“I bribed the groundsman with a bag of sweets to let me take some balls out on to the pitch – it was easier to play on a flat football pitch than a meadow like Welford Road.”

So what really happened when the referee indicated a penalty?

“Rod Kafer and Martin Johnson had a talk about what line-out call they’d use. Johnno forgot to ask me whether I could kick it and so I just said we were going for the posts,” he added.

“I was always a better kicker under pressure, although Scott Quinnell labelled me something like ‘the biggest cheat in rugby’ because he thinks I stole a couple of yards from where the kick was awarded.

“I did try and steal a few yards, but the referee put me back on the mark. I got a bit nervous as I thought the scrum penalty had been awarded nearer the half-way line. I knew I couldn’t lash at the ball and I was telling myself to rely on my swing – and not to swing too fast.

“It was at the limit of my control but off the boot I thought it was over. Then it hit the crossbar. I was broken because I’d just overruled Martin Johnson, who would potentially have killed me.

“It all went in slow motion. I saw some Welshmen celebrating when it hit the cross-bar, but then it hit the post and somehow it went over.

“Two minutes later, Jamie Hamilton kicked the ball out and we were in the final.”

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Source: Welsh Rugby