Clermont 10- 29 Leicester: Tigers take giant stride towards the Champions Cup last eight

Steve Borthwick praised the guts and determination of his Leicester side after they claimed their first victory at Clermont Auvergne for 17 years.

Leicester will take a 19-point lead into next weekend’s Heineken Champions Cup last-16 second leg at Welford Road after running out 29-10 winners at the Stade Marcel-Michelin despite Guy Porter’s 59th-minute sending off.

And Leicester head coach Borthwick put the result down to the character and togetherness of his squad.

‘I thought for the main part of this game we were tactically really smart against a big team,’ said Borthwick.

‘The way we adapted to the red card and playing with 14 men for 20 minutes was great. I think ultimately the biggest thing is how hard they worked for each other.’

Leicester scored five tries in total courtesy of Ellis Genge, Julian Montoya, Jack Van Poortvliet, Hosea Saumaki and Harry Potter. George Ford also contributed four points from the kicking tee.

All Clermont could muster was a single try from Cheikh Tiberghien, and five points from Morgan Parra’s boot.

Porter was shown a red card for making contact with the head of Clermont number eight Fritz Lee.

Borthwick played down the incident, insisting Porter had no intention to harm Lee.

‘He has a fantastic disciplinary record and is an honest player. We don’t want any players getting hurt. That’s not why we play rugby.’

Borthwick has warned his side they will have to stay focused in the second leg to book their place in the last eight.

‘I’m really looking forward to next week, but we have to ensure we are at our best because Clermont are a very good side,’ the former England captain said.

‘Welford Road can be a loud stadium. The supporters are going to bring a lot of heart.

‘I’m looking forward to that and hopefully finishing another game well.’