Amidst a classic rugby union's greatest rivalries, the fixture involving the Tigers and Bath was heavily influenced by an emotional tribute at the interval as any rugby during play.
The legendary Martin Johnson headed a phalanx of Leicester former players in honour of Lewis Moody, who has revealed that he has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease.
When Moody wore the Tigers' jersey here, 15 years ago, before moving to their rivals Bath for the last two years in a distinguished playing career, the home side remained still at the peak of their powers, while their opponents found themselves enduring a long drought without the title. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. Bath came into the match as title holders, the first time they've held that status since the 1990s.
An Emotional Reception on Home Turf
The Tigers, on a wave of emotion, served up an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as underdogs on their own pitch, the 18,000 Midlanders further emboldened by Moody’s confession at half-time that regardless of his residence, Welford Road remains the home of his rugby heart.
Looking back, Bath did not stand a chance. True to form, in a last-minute assault deep in Bath territory, Leicester managed to coax one last penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
The Climax
Billy Searle, on for the excellent James O'Connor, the seasoned Australian making his debut start for Leicester, darted blind, and the Bath prop caught him high, an infringement for which he saw yellow. From the final play, Searle slotted the penalty kick from a difficult angle to steal the win.
We might as well have been transported back of Moody’s pomp. Without a doubt, Leicester, who climb a little higher in the mid-table bun fight, will be heartened that their traditional, direct approach remains effective, no matter the pedigree of the opponent.
A Tale of Two Game Plans
The visitors were sublime with ball in hand. So Leicester, following a confusing opening period in which they fell 17-7 behind, adapted to starve them of possession. A deluge of penalties conceded by Bath kept Bath on the back foot, their forwards comprehensively bested at the set piece throughout the game.
Leicester’s three tries were remarkably similar, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath’s three were studies in poetry. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath scored the tries, either side of Ollie Cracknell’s try for Tigers. Then, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith powered over for tries either side of half-time.
The 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, their South Africans by then on. Finn Russell, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, landed the kick inside the final ten minutes.
That only inspired Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, initiated by the energetic Hassell-Collins down the left. Having won the penalty that put Bath ahead in a situation he relishes, poor Du Toit conceded where he is not. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
