Amidst one of English rugby's greatest rivalries, this fixture involving Leicester versus the visitors was heavily influenced by an emotion during half-time as the on-field action on play.
Martin Johnson led a phalanx comprising Leicester old boys in honour of the great Lewis Moody, who has announced his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.
The last time Moody last pulled on a Leicester jersey here, 15 years ago, before moving to Bath for his final two seasons of a storied career, the home side were more or less still at the peak of their powers, whereas their opponents found themselves enduring a lengthy period without the title. Times have changed since. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, the first time they've held that status in over two decades.
An Emotional Reception at Welford Road
Leicester, on a wave of emotion, served up an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as underdogs on their own pitch, the 18,000 Midlanders greatly inspired by Moody's heartfelt admission during the break that regardless of his residence, this famous ground remains his rugby home.
Looking back, Bath did not stand a chance. True to form, during a final, desperate attack on the Bath line, the Tigers won one last penalty out of the Bath defence.
The Climax
Billy Searle, who replaced the excellent James O’Connor, the seasoned Australian making his debut start for the club, darted blind, and Thomas du Toit made a high tackle, for which offence he saw yellow. From the final play, Searle slotted the penalty kick from a difficult angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
It felt like being back in the days to Lewis Moody's prime. Without a doubt, Leicester, who moved up the table in the mid-table bun fight, will be heartened that their traditional, direct approach can still yield results, regardless of the quality they face.
A Tale of Two Styles
Bath were sublime with ball in hand. So Leicester, following a confusing opening period in which they fell 17-7 behind, learned to deprive them of any. A deluge of penalties against the away side kept Bath on the back foot, their forwards comprehensively bested at the set piece throughout the game.
Leicester’s three tries were remarkably similar, all scored from close range; Bath’s three were works of art. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath scored the tries, before and after Ollie Cracknell’s try for Leicester. Subsequently, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith powered over to score just before and just after the break.
A Tense Finish
That earned Tigers the lead, which they held for most of the second half. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath won enough ball to score their fourth. Actually, their scoring opportunity arrived via an infrequent penalty at the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. The fly-half, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, successfully converted the penalty with a little less than 10 minutes to play.
This merely galvanized Leicester for one last, brutish assault, set up by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins on the left wing. Having won the penalty that earned Bath the lead where he is most comfortable, the unfortunate prop conceded where he is not. There could be only one result.
