The stage was set for a classic game of rugby, as Cardiff Blues welcomed Leicester Tigers to the Welsh capital. The prize? A place in the Heineken Cup final. But no one could've predicted what was about to happen at the home of Welsh rugby...
Cardiff Blues 26 Leicester Tigers 26
Sunday May 3 2009, 3.00pm, Principality Stadium
It was a stunning day in Cardiff, as more than 44,000 supporters were in attendance for what would be an unforgettable occasion.
The home side were dealt an early blow, as influential lock, Paul Tito, was forced off after 10 minutes, however, fellow Kiwi, Ben Blair, gave Wales’ Capital Region an early lead with a penalty.
Leicester struck back with the game’s opening try, as Toby Flood’s speculative offload released Scott Hamilton down the centre of the field.
The wing skipped past the final defender to slide in under the sticks.
Blair, Leigh Halfpenny and Julien Dupuy battled from the tee to take Leicester into half time with a 12-13 lead.
Flood and Dupuy were again at the centre of for the visitors’ second try of the afternoon. A fine pass from the scrum half released England international Flood on the half break.
Ma’ama Molitika recovered well, but the outside half had composure to put Geordan Murphy through as Dupuy’s conversion extended the lead to eight points.
The French international added two more penalties, anduddenly the Blues had a mountain to climb. With the game seemingly out of sight, it would take a miracle to come back.
Xavier Rush inspired his team to look for a way back into the clash, and despite piling on the pressure, weren’t able to break through as cynical fouls from Leicester saw Murphy and Craig Newby sent to the sin bin.
With seven minutes remaining, a fine move in midfield saw a miss-pass from Nicky Robinson picking out Jamie Roberts on the charge, who was in acre of space on the left.
The centre dummied past Hamilton, and despite looking around for support, he didn’t need it as he slid in out wide.
Blair slotted the touchline conversion, but Dai Young’s side still trailed by seven points.
From the restart, Cardiff Blues had no option but to attack from deep. Roberts brushed off a defender before offloading to James on his outside.
The wing raced down the left hand side, displaying his blistering turn of pace to beat Jordan Crane clean on his outside and dive at the corner.
Blair expertly converted, and we were heading to a penalty shootout. The drama was yet to begin.
Both sides made no mistakes with their first three attempts. Ceri Sweeney struck Cardiff Blues’ fourth, but Johne Murphy sliced his effort, giving the hosts a match-winning kick.
However, Tom James was off target with his effort, sending us into sudden death.
Tom Shanklin and Richie Rees added kicks for Young’s side, but Martyn Williams hooked his effort, with Jordan Crane sealing the victory for Leicester.
Tigers would go on to be edged out by Leinster in the final at Edinburgh, but history was made in Cardiff and despite the loss, was an unforgettable experience.
Cardiff Blues kicked off their Heineken Champions Cup campaign with a stunning victory at Lyon, and will return to the Arms Park to take on Glasgow Warriors on Sunday.
Be there to support the boys! Tickets are available now and can be purchased by clicking here or calling 029 20 302030.
Cardiff Blues: Ben Blair; Leigh Halfpenny, Tom Shanklin, Jamie Roberts, Tom James; Nicky Robinson, Richie Rees; Gethin Jenkins, Gareth Williams, Taufa’ao Filise, Bradley Davies, Paul Tito, Ma’ama Molitika, Martyn Williams, Xavier Rush
Replacements: John Yapp, T Rhys Thomas, Deiniol Jones, Andy Powell, Darren Allinson, Ceri Sweeney, Gareth Thomas
Leicester Tigers: Geordan Murphy; Scott Hamilton, Dan Hipkiss, Sam Vesty, Johne Murphy; Toby Flood, Julien Dupuy; Marcos Ayerza, George Chuter, Martin Castrogiovanni, Tom Croft, Ben Kay, Craig Newby, Ben Woods, Jordan Crane
Replacements: Benjamin Kayser, Julian White, Marco Wentzel, Lewis Moody, Harry Ellis, Aaron Mauger, Matt Smith