Joe Ford's late penalty steers Leicester to 15-17 win over Cardiff Blues

Cardiff Blues 15-17 Leicester Tigers

A late-gasp penalty from Joe Ford with seconds left in the game steered Leicester Tigers to a thrilling 15-17 win over Cardiff Blues in their pre-season friendly at Cardiff Arms Park.

This was also the first game for the Welsh regional side since John Mulvihill took over as head coach and it proved a tough one as the Blues failed to convert their second-half performance into points. The game also saw Wales international Tom James make a comeback after battling depression.

Leicester got off to a promising start with a try from Jordan Olowofela before Joe, the brother of George Ford converted it to take them to a seven-point lead. The visitors doubled the lead with a touchdown from Thom Smith and Ford once again improved it to make it 0-14.

The Blues finally responded with a try from Jason Harries after a superb work from Dan Fish. The second try from Blues came in the 52nd minute when Dane Blacker strolled past the post.

Steven Shingler kicked a conversion and a penalty as the scores remained 15-14 before Ford's heroics in the last second saw Leicester complete a 15-17 victory.