Leicester Tigers will a bag top-two finish in league, predicts Andy Goode
Former Leicester Tigers fly-half Andy Goode has backed his old team to finish in the top two of the Aviva Premiership.
Goode spent a decade at Welford Road between 1998 and 2008, and he received a warm welcome from the home fans on his return as a Worcester Warrior on Saturday.
The 32-year-old's 16-point haul with the boot was not enough to bring his side any return from the fixture as they went back to Sixways with a 34-26 defeat.
Goode says he saw enough from his former club to expect them to be right at the top of the tree come May next year.
Business Cards From Only £10.95 Delivered www.myprint-247.co.uk
View detailsOur heavyweight cards have FREE UV silk coating, FREE next day delivery & VAT included. Choose from 1000's of pre-designed templates or upload your own artwork. Orders dispatched within 24hrs.
Terms: Visit our site for more products: Business Cards, Compliment Slips, Letterheads, Leaflets, Postcards, Posters & much more. All items are free next day delivery. www.myprint-247.co.uk
Contact: 01858 468192
Valid until: Wednesday, May 22 2013
"I am sure they will be in the top two," said Goode.
"Cockers (Richard Cockerill, Tigers director of rugby) has done a great job coaching them and they have a superb squad.
"When you see the likes Dan Cole coming on for Martin Castrogiovanni at tight-head, it speaks volumes for the strength of the club.
"They are strong every year and they can compete on all fronts.
"It's high-time that Leicester won the championship again.
"Leicester are a very well-drilled team. We are getting there and that is what we need to aspire to be.
"Every time Leicester got into our 22, they scored points.
"We dropped off a few tackles but the Leicester machine is an attacking one, and they have pace and ball carriers all over the place.
"Vereniki Goneva looks one heck of player and the old man Geordan Murphy can still beat a few people at the back.
"They have a good squad, are a good bunch of lads and they are looking a quality side this year."
Despite being disappointed with the defeat, Goode said his side have a lot more potential that last season, and he was also pleased to have lasted a full 80 minutes – something he did not manage in the same fixture in 2011-12.
"I was gutted by the red card last year and it was important that I righted the wrongs of last season," he said.
"This is the best ground in the land at the minute and I got a great reception from the crowd, which meant a lot to me.
"I had some fantastic years here and it's great to come back and play. Who knows what the future holds."
He added: "Last year at Worcester, we tried to make ourselves difficult to beat, but we have more emphasis on attack this year and we are evolving and getting better in an attempt to get into the top six.
"We can cause damage but we just need to be more consistent.
"We need to get the ball in Josh Drauniniu's hands more and, with guys like David Lemi and Alex Grove, we have some pace out wide.
"We just lost composure at times and dropped off a few tackles. We need to bounce back against Gloucester this weekend."
Comments