Amidst one of rugby union's greatest contests, the fixture involving the Tigers and the visitors was as much about an emotion at half-time as any on-field action on the pitch.
The legendary Martin Johnson headed a contingent comprising Tigers former players in honour of the great Lewis Moody, after he revealed that he has been diagnosed with MND.
The last time Moody wore a Leicester shirt at Welford Road, 15 years ago, before moving to their rivals Bath for the last two years of a storied career, the home side remained still at the peak of their powers, while Bath found themselves in the middle of a long drought without the title. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, the first time they've held that status since the 1990s.
A Truly Passionate Welcome at Welford Road
The Tigers, riding a powerful emotional surge, served up a classic, robust reception, relishing their status as underdogs on their own pitch, the large home crowd greatly inspired by Moody's heartfelt admission at half-time that, no matter where he may live, this famous ground will always be his rugby home.
In retrospect, Bath were always up against it. True to form, in a last-minute assault on the Bath line, Leicester won a crucial penalty out of the Bath defence.
The Climax
The replacement fly-half, who replaced the impressive James O’Connor, the seasoned Australian making his debut start for Leicester, darted blind, before Thomas du Toit made a high tackle, an infringement for which he received a yellow card. With the last kick, Searle landed the penalty from a difficult angle to steal the win.
It felt like being back in the days to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, the home team, who moved up the table in the mid-table bun fight, will be heartened that a familiar frontal assault remains effective, regardless of the quality they face.
A Tale of Two Game Plans
Bath were a different class with ball in hand. Therefore, Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour which saw them trail 17-7, adapted to starve them of possession. A succession of penalties against Bath put Bath under constant pressure, their pack comprehensively bested at the set piece for most of the match.
The Tigers' three touchdowns were remarkably similar, all scored from close range; Bath's three tries were works of art. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath scored the tries, either side of Ollie Cracknell’s try for Leicester. Subsequently, on the back of those penalties, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith powered over for tries just before and just after the break.
A Tense Conclusion
Those scores gave Leicester the lead, an advantage they maintained for most of the second half. It appeared inevitable before Bath secured sufficient possession to score their fourth. In fact, their breakthrough arrived via an infrequent penalty in the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. Finn Russell, after missing two earlier kicks, successfully converted the penalty inside the final ten minutes.
This merely galvanized Leicester for one last, brutish assault, initiated by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins down the left. Having won the penalty that earned Bath the lead in a situation he relishes, the unfortunate prop conceded where he is not. There could be only one result.
