Amidst a classic rugby union's most storied rivalries, the match between the Tigers and Bath was heavily influenced by an emotional tribute during the interval than the on-field action during play.
Martin Johnson headed a phalanx comprising Tigers former players to pay tribute to Lewis Moody, after he revealed that he has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease.
When Moody wore a Leicester jersey here, a decade and a half past, prior to joining Bath for the last two years in a distinguished playing career, the home side were more or less close to their very best, whereas Bath were situated enduring a lengthy period without the title. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals came into the match as title holders, the first time they've held that status in over two decades.
An Passionate Welcome at Welford Road
Leicester, on a wave of emotion, offered them an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as the unfancied team on their own pitch, the 18,000 Midlanders greatly inspired by Moody's heartfelt admission at half-time that, no matter where he may live, Welford Road will always be his rugby home.
Looking back, the visiting side were always up against it. Sure enough, in a last-minute assault deep in Bath territory, the Tigers won a crucial penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
The Climax
Billy Searle, on for the impressive James O’Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for the club, darted blind, before Thomas du Toit caught him high, for which offence he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick on an angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
We might as well have been transported back to Lewis Moody's prime. Without a doubt, Leicester, who moved up the table in the mid-table bun fight, will be heartened that a familiar frontal assault can still yield results, regardless of the quality of the opponent.
A Tale of Two Styles
Bath were a different class with ball in hand. Therefore, Leicester, following a confusing opening period in which they fell 17-7 behind, learned to deprive them of any. A deluge of penalties conceded by Bath put Bath on the back foot, their forwards comprehensively bested at the set piece for most of the match.
The Tigers' three touchdowns were carbon copies of each other, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath's three tries were works of art. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath scored the tries, before and after Cracknell's score for Tigers. Then, on the back of those penalties, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith forced their way over for tries either side of half-time.
A Tense Finish
Those scores gave Leicester a narrow advantage, an advantage they maintained for the majority of the second period. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath won enough ball to score their fourth. In fact, their breakthrough came with a rare penalty in the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. The fly-half, after missing two earlier kicks, landed the kick with a little less than 10 minutes to play.
That only inspired Leicester for one last, brutish assault, set up by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins on the left wing. After earning the penalty that earned Bath the lead where he is most comfortable, the unfortunate prop gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
