Anyone looking for the quintessential weekend cup occasion, regardless of the shape of the ball, should have been at the Stoop on Saturday. It is rare a ticket tout has to be ejected from Harlequins. The celebrations prompted by Leicester's defeat were as heartfelt as any in the club's history.
At the end of a turbulent week in which their erstwhile head coach Zinzan Brooke was ushered off the premises, the club regained some self-belief. Quins' day had started with a video, compiled by the assistant coach Richard Hill, of all their best moments of a hitherto dodgy season. The psychology may have been obvious enough, but the results were staggering. Keith Wood, from Will Greenwood's slip pass, had breached the best defence in the country within nine minutes, the tackling was immense throughout and, had Craig Chalmers not missed six kicks, Leicester, without their captain Martin Johnson who was suspended, would have been obliterated.
Leicester's best period came and went midway through the first half when they scored two tries in four minutes through Geordan Murphy and Andy Goode, coinciding with a spell when every Quins kick was either disappearing into touch or, in Chalmers' case, sailing wide of the posts.
It took until the 37th minute for the on-loan Scottish outhalf to land one from 40 metres at the fifth attempt, before Ryan O'Neill's inside pass allowed Greenwood to slice through on a cute angle to ensure a 15-15 halftime scoreline.
More raucous delight followed soon after the restart when Nick Burrows shimmied through the defensive line and, when checked a couple of metres short, found the inspirational David Wilson at his elbow.
Meanwhile, in the other semifinal on Saturday Jonny Wilkinson kicked 22 points to earn Newcastle victory against Sale and a Twickenham date with Harlequins.
Harlequins: O'Neill; Greenstock (Woods, 64min), Greenwood, Burrows, Daniel; Chalmers, Powell; Leonard, Wood, Dawson (Starr, 59), Morgan, White-Cooper, Winters (Jenkins, 64), Wilson (capt), Peters.
Leicester: Stimpson; Murphy, Lloyd, Howard, Tuilagi; Goode, Healey; Rowntree (Freshwater 69), West, Garforth, Corry, Kay, Gustard (Moody 15), Back, W Johnson (Balding, 69). Referee: B Campsall (Yorkshire).
