Winning mentality will be Michael Cheika's Leicester legacy

Leicester lock Ollie Chessum is in no doubt Michael Cheika's legacy will have a lasting impact on the club, no matter what the result in his final game as head coach against Bath in the Gallagher Premiership final.
It is set to be a summer of change at Mattioli Woods Welford Road, with former Leicester player Geoff Parling set to take charge after the Australian departs at the end of his one-year contract.
Just a couple of seasons on from their last Premiership final triumph, the Tigers finished eighth in a disappointing 2023-24 campaign.
The arrival of Cheika – who took the Wallabies to the 2015 World Cup final and then guided Argentina into the last four two years ago – saw Leicester's fortunes transformed.
On the back of a new-found mental resilience, Cheika's men were driven on to second place in the table behind Bath.
Chessum, who fought his way back to fitness following a knee injury suffered in an England training camp in October, feels 58-year-old Cheika deserves plenty of plaudits for helping turn the club around.
'We were in a real good spot a few years ago as a group, and we probably lost our way a little bit and that is how you find yourself down in eighth and out of the play-offs,' said Chessum, set to be part of the British and Irish Lions tour to Australia.
'There is no denying that something needed to change in quite a few aspects of our game.
'Cheiks will say we have probably not changed too much technically, but it is just around that mental side and the emotional side of the game is what has really changed everything this year and has put us in this spot.'
Chessum, 24, added: 'He just finds a way to galvanise the group, get them to find a real meaning in what they are doing and use that to to drive them on. Our mental approach for the team has changed massively towards games.
'He will say that goes a huge way towards winning, it is just believing you can do it and sort of shocking yourself really with what you are able to do as an individual.
'The way he has changed how the team approaches the game mentally has been a huge part of what he will leave as a legacy.'
Cheika has named an unchanged side from the semi-final win over Sale for Saturday's showpiece at the Allianz Stadium, which will see several Leicester players make their last appearance in a Tigers shirt.
Club stalwarts Dan Cole and Ben Youngs will retire while captain Julian Montoya, South Africa fly-half Handre Pollard, James Cronin and Matt Rogerson are all set to depart.
Leicester lost home and away to Bath during the regular campaign, beaten 43-15 at The Recreation Ground in May.
Chessum knows the Tigers will have to step up to the challenge as Bath seek to complete a trophy treble with what would be the Somerset club's first league title since 1996.
'They don't just play this stylish brand of rugby – they have still got this huge pack that can can break you down physically as well, so they are a great team,' Chessum said.
'We will have to front up on all fronts and be at our best to beat them, but that is the beauty of the challenge and of finals rugby.'

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Powys County Times

21 minutes ago

• Powys County Times

Finn Russell says Andy Farrell helped put any tension with Johnny Sexton to bed

Finn Russell has revealed that he buried the hatchet with Johnny Sexton with the help of Andy Farrell as the old foes join forces on the British and Irish Lions tour to Australia. Sexton has previously been critical of Russell, labelling him 'flashy' and a 'media darling', while adding he would choose Owen Farrell over him against the Wallabies because the former England captain is a 'Test match animal'. And in his autobiography, the Ireland great confessed that it 'kills me to this day' that he was overlooked in favour of Russell for the 2021 Lions tour to South Africa. Now the former fly-half rivals are working together to plot the downfall of Australia, with Sexton acting as the Lions kicking skills coach and Russell in pole position to take the playmaking duties in the Test series. When they first linked up after the players involved in the Gallagher Premiership and United Rugby Championship finals arrived into camp earlier this week, any acrimony quickly faded. 'It's just been bit of a craic. It was never a thing. When we came in, we had a laugh straight away and Andy kind of put it to bed so that was good,' Scotland international Russell said. 'Not that it was ever going to be an issue, I don't believe. We're all here with the same goal, which is to win the series. 'I've only been here a few days but it's been good working with Johnny. I'm happy to bounce questions off him and chat to him about what he's seeing. 'With the numbers we've had, he's had to jump in sometimes so it's been quite funny being on the same training side as him. 'It's good to have a guy with his experience here. I can chat to him and bounce things off him as and when I need. 'All the coaches seem open to conversations and chats. It's a good environment to be in.' Australia will be Russell's third expedition with the Lions, with all three set to be very different experiences. In 2017 in New Zealand he was part of the controversial 'Geography Six', a group of Scotland and Wales players who were called into Warren Gatland's squad not on merit but because of their close proximity while on summer tours. Four years later he travelled to South Africa where all matches were played behind closed doors due to the pandemic, denying the Lions their famed 'sea of red' support. The Bath ringmaster started the third Test against the Springbocks. 'New Zealand was still amazing because it was my first time being called up to the Lions,' Russell said. 'We weren't there for the whole tour, but to have gone to New Zealand and played was really cool for me. 'And then in 2021 it was special going the whole time, even though it was Covid. We couldn't have family and friends or fans at the game, but it was still amazing in a different way. 'In terms of the boys, we probably got to know each other a little bit better because it was just us in the hotel and whatnot. I'm looking forward to what this one's going to be like.'

Daily Mail​

34 minutes ago

• Daily Mail​

The Lions head Down Under! Maro Itoje leads his squad to Australia... flying in the world's most luxurious suites

The Lions journey to Australia has finally begun after the players took off from Dublin on Saturday morning. Just hours after Friday night's defeat by Argentina, the squad bedded down in their luxury Qsuites on a Qatar Airways flight to Perth. The squad will stop off in Doha, before continuing their journey to the Southern Hemisphere for their opening tour match against Western Force. After a game of cards at the airport, Maro Itoje led his team on board, suited and booted, promising improvements as he plots to lead the side to victory Down Under. He was followed on board by back-row Henry Pollock who, as the youngest player in the squad, is responsible for carrying BIL the lion teddy throughout the tour. Andy Farrell is likely to rotate his side for the opening match at the Optus Stadium, where 40,000 tickets have already been sold for the curtain raiser. Title-winning players from Leinster and Bath are likely to feature, with the likes of No 10 Finn Russell all due game time. 'We land Sunday night in Perth, I imagine on Monday morning we'll have something getting us up and going again,' said Russell. 'So I think getting a schedule or a routine as soon as you get there is pretty important. 'But the guys who will be looking after that and trying to give us a plan for when we sleep on the flight, they've had it planned out for longer than we think.'

The Independent

35 minutes ago

• The Independent

Ollie Pope century silences critics as England fight back against India

Ollie Pope repaid England's faith and banished further questions over his place as his fine century helped turn the tables on day two of the first Test against India. Pope's grip on the number three spot looked shaky at the start of the summer as Jacob Bethell pushed hard for the shirt, but having shored up his position with 171 against Zimbabwe last month he put the debate to bed with 100 not out against the might of Jasprit Bumrah and company. Ben Stokes had claimed it would be 'remarkable' to dispense with his vice-captain and those words chimed as Pope led England to 209 for three in response to India's 471 at Headingley. The tourists had earlier missed the opportunity to bat their opponents out of the game, losing seven for 41 as Josh Tongue and Ben Stokes finished with four wickets apiece. Their combined efforts rebalanced the game after India's serene progress on day one but the presence of Bumrah cast a long shadow. The world's best bowler lived up to the billing, ripping out Zak Crawley with the new ball and returning for Ben Duckett and Joe Root, but his best was not quite enough to remove Pope. Twice he saw genuine edges sail through gaps in the cordon and when one did go to hand at gully, Yashasvi Jaiswal spilled him on 60. Pope dealt admirably with the interrogation, never losing his composure and scoring 13 fours in a 125-ball ton boasting plenty of character. The milestone may have arrived with a scratchy single into the leg-side but it was fitting that it came off the relentless Bumrah. The day began ominously for England, who took the field at 359 for three and soon began dancing to Rishabh Pant's tune. Resuming on 65 he became the third centurion of the innings with some outrageous hitting. He ramped Shoaib Bashir's first ball over slip, rang up the 400 with a fierce pull for six and flogged the spinner one-handed over the ropes to bring up his hundred. He marked the occasion with an extravagant front flip to delight the crowd but as soon as his stand of 209 with captain Shubman Gill was over, it was England making the big moves. Karun Nair bagged a duck on his first appearance in seven years, Pope snatching a smart one-handed catch, then Pant paid for a moment of indecision as he squared up then offered no stroke as Tongue attacked from round the wicket. The Nottinghamshire seamer had waited an hour and 40 minutes to get his hands on the ball but he made up for the wait, clean bowling Ravindra Jadeja, Bumrah and Prasidh Krishna in a four-over spell of four for 11. A rain shower delayed the start of the England innings, which began with clouds above, floodlights on and Bumrah licking his lips. He picked off Crawley with menacing efficiency in the first over, prying around the outside edge twice before having him caught at slip with a cracker. The rest of his spell was edge-of-the-seat viewing – hitting Ben Duckett on the toe for a tight lbw shout and twice coming close to having the left-hander caught at backward point. Pope also had a stroke of luck on 10, saved only by the yawning gap where fourth slip should have been. But whenever Bumrah was not bowling it was a different game. Runs came easier at the other end, with England's natural aggression meaning a regular supply of boundaries. At one stage Bumrah even proved his fallibility by fumbling the ball over the rope at fine leg. Pope has a reputation as a skittish starter but he looked calmer than usual, his footwork less erratic and his drives a little crisper as England took tea at 107 for one from just 24 overs. Duckett reached 50 with a classic sweep but when Pope followed after the break it was another moral victory for Bumrah. Tearing back in from the Pavilion End he drew a thick edge and was let down again, with no third slip in place. Pope's luck was in once more when Jaiswal put him down and Bumrah eventually took the catchers out of the equation as he finally got a second scalp, flattening Duckett's middle stump via a drag-on. Pope was made to work for his century, trading blows with the seamers until he finally reached the landmark and erupted in celebration. Root succumbed to Bumrah's very next delivery and Harry Brook was caught off a no-ball in a dramatic finish, leaving Pope standing tallest at stumps.