Jeremy Guscott: Come on Leicester, prove that Toulon are just mercenaries

Two fantastic European fixtures will be taking place today, Toulon v Tigers and Harlequins v Munster. In both cases it’s old multi-winners against newbie wannabe winners, all at critical transitional periods of team development.
Quins have at least won a recent league title whereas Toulon haven’t won a bean at the top table of any significance since 1992 despite having had two excellent chances last season in the Amlin Cup final against Biarritz and the Top 14 final against Toulouse.
Toulon’s fanatical multi-millionaire benefactor Mourad Boudjellal must be wondering when all his spending is going to reward him with a trophy. With players like Jonny Wilkinson, Matt Giteau, Mathieu Bastareaud, Bakkies Botha, Carl Hayman and Juan Fernandez Lobbe on the club roster it must surely happen soon.
Toulon will have 11 overseas players in their starting line-up with more arriving next season. If success doesn’t happen soon the finger of blame will start pointing somewhere. It’s hard enough to construct a championship-winning team with players from the same country let alone from all over the world. Most of the team have accepted contracts because of the financial incentives offered, but it hasn’t so far made for a team in such harmony that, when it comes to the crunch, they pull together and get over the line!
You would like to think the two defeats in finals last season will have galvanised the players and that needs to come out in these knockout stages otherwise they will lose again. Even with a player like Wilkinson who is professional beyond professionalism, it hasn’t yet happened.
Lobbe is another whose tireless work ethic has to reach through to his teammates and if it doesn’t, or hasn’t, it must prove that this team are mercenaries who are solely in it for the money.
The superstars of Toulon face a team that hasn’t had much recent success given their pedigree in this competition. Tigers culture of training and playing has remained pretty constant over the years because they have integrated past players into the coaching roles at the club.
It was certainly successful under Dean Richards but not so much now with Richard Cockerill. In fairness, financial circumstances have changed dramatically to make Cockerill’s job of succeeding in the Heineken nearly impossible.
Even so, Tigers still have enough talent to give any team a good run: Mathew Tait, Manu Tuilagi, Toby Flood and Ben Youngs with forwards Marcos Ayerza, Dan Cole, Geoff Parling and Tom Croft give them massive credibility. Tigers will understand they have a great chance if they can disrupt the multi-talented team of Toulon.
Delon Armitage still has some attitude problems, two yellow cards in Top 14 games and one in the Heineken Cup tells me he still hasn’t cut this unnecessary side out of his temperament out. The plusses, though, are still what makes him an incredibly dangerous attacking player. He’s scoring tries and making lots of metres carrying the ball – he’s one of only two players to surpass 500m in the competition. Normarily a player with his ability would be a certainty to play for his country, so it has to be his attitude that prevents this from happening, which is a massive shame.
His brother, Steffon, has no such problems with attitude and has a point to prove to England and Lions selectors – and what a platform to do it on. He can’t afford to go over the top in showing he is the best openside in Europe, although that’s exactly what he’s been doing in most of his games so he will be hoping for business as usual.
Wilkinson will keep the scoreboard ticking over if Tigers give away penalties. Although he has only a 67 per cent kick rate in the tournament so far, when it comes to the time and moment Jonny rarely misses the important ones.
Despite Tigers winning so emphatically last weekend against Saints this match is on a different scale. Playing at the Mayol Stadium with the Provencal anthem, La Coupo Santo, vibrating through their bones is a different proposition altogether. The old Tigers under Richards would have a chance because they had a belligerent attitude and a mix of skill and brawn coupled with match winners. Tigers rely so much on forward power to blow Aviva Premiership teams away but this Toulon side can easily match that.
Tigers must play to their strengths, which in this competition have been the lineout and their kicking game. As usual execution must be spot-on with few errors. Keep the home crowd silent has to be the order of the day – if they manage that then the impossible might just be possible.