Wasps snapped an eight-year drought at Welford Road with a 34-22 win over hosts the Leicester Tigers, while there were also English Premiership wins for Sale and Bath.

Wasps had not won here since 2008, but this time they were always a step ahead of the Tigers in their quest to overturn that wretched record.

The Tigers, with Bok veteran JP Pietersen in their ranks, played well in patches but were unable to apply long periods of pressure on the visitors. Ill-discipline, which saw them concede two yellow cards, also didn’t help their cause.

Inside centre Jimmy Gopperth, shifted here to accommodate Danny Cipriani at flyhalf, kicked Wasps into a 6-3 lead. He continued to stamp his authority on the game with a scathing break before hacking the ball forward for flyer Christian Wade to swoop and score.

Both sides grabbed two tries each after that, but while Freddie Burns hooked Leicester’s conversion attempts, Gopperth kept his perfect record intact as Wasps opened up a 27-13 lead just after the interval.

A shift in momentum saw Leicester claw their way back to within five via three Burns penalties, but two simultaneous cards for Tigers duo Ellis Genge and Peter Betham afforded Wasps to close out the game. Gopperth scored a last-gasp try to secure maximum log points for Wasps and also deny the Tigers a losing bonus point.

Meanwhile, Bath scored eight tries to cruise to a 58-5 bonus-point win over the Newcastle Falcons at the Rec, Dan Mugford kicked 14 points to guide the Sale Sharks to a hard-fought 19-10 triumph against Harlequins and Gloucester drew 23-23 with the Worcester Warriors at Sixways. 

On Sunday, Saracens continued their winning ways with a 34-13 bonus-point win against hosts the Exeter Chiefs and Northampton Saints defeated Bristol 32-10.

Round 2 results:

Leicester Tigers 22 Wasps 34
Bath 58 Newcastle Falcons 5
Sale Sharks 19 Harlequins 10
Gloucester 23 Worcester Warriors 23
Exeter Chiefs 13 Saracens 34
Bristol 10 Northampton Saints 32

Photo: Daivd Rogers/Getty Images