Tigers hit top spot

The hosts produced a spirited display to take a losing bonus point, but it could have been more but for a disappointing second half after they had led 14-7 at the break.

Victory could have come at a cost for the Tigers with wing Matt Smith, scrum-half Julian Dupuy and flanker Marco Wentzel suffering injuries to join the seven players already sidelined.

The Tigers took the lead while down to 14 men, as Smith was receiving treatment for a right leg injury, as Dan Cole picked up from a ruck and slipped a couple of half tackles to score under the posts with Dupuy adding the extras.

Bristol replied immediately as Luke Arscott broke through before passing to Robert Sidoli. The lock was stopped just short of the line but managed to return the pass to the full-back to touchdown with Ed Barnes adding the conversion.

Five minutes before the break Bristol went into the lead as they worked the ball along the backs to wing David Lemi who ran in 20 metres down the left unopposed with Barnes adding the touchline conversion to the cheers of their supporters.

Just before the interval the Tigers lost a third players to injury as flanker Wentzel had to be carried from the pitch on a stretcher to be replaced Ben Herring as Bristol led 14-7 at the break.

Leicester reduced the arrears to a single points as simple errors and poor discipline crept in to Bristol's play. Fly-half Tom Vesty first kicked a simple 10-metre penalty from in front of the posts and a second from 41 metres.

Bristol came back as Neil Brew broke through supported by Sidoli, and then Lemi, before Leicester were penalised at the breakdown and Barnes kicked the penalty.

But Leicester came back as replacement scrum-half Ben Youngs raced away before off-loading to Dan Hipkiss who scored under the posts and Vesty added the simple conversion and a penalty in the final minute to seal the game.