Amidst one of rugby union's most storied rivalries, the match involving Leicester and the visitors was as much about the emotion at half-time as any rugby during the pitch.
The legendary Martin Johnson headed a contingent of Tigers former players in honour of Lewis Moody, after he announced that he has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease.
The last time Moody last pulled on a Leicester shirt at Welford Road, 15 years ago, prior to joining their rivals Bath for the last two years in a distinguished playing career, Leicester were more or less still at their very best, while their opponents found themselves in the middle of a lengthy period without the title. Times have changed since. The Tigers’ great rivals came into the match as title holders, marking the first occasion they've held that status since the 1990s.
An Passionate Welcome at Welford Road
The Tigers, riding a powerful emotional surge, served up an old-fashioned welcome, embracing the role of the unfancied team 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, 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 on the Bath line, Leicester won one last penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
The Climax
The replacement fly-half, on for the excellent James O’Connor, the seasoned Australian making his debut start for Leicester, took a quick tap, and the Bath prop made a high tackle, an infringement for which he saw yellow. From the final play, Searle landed the penalty on an angle to steal the win.
We might as well have been back in the days of Moody’s pomp. Without a doubt, the home team, who climb a little higher in the mid-table bun fight, can take great encouragement that a familiar frontal assault remains effective, no matter the pedigree they face.
Contrasting 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 deluge of penalties against Bath put Bath on the back foot, their forwards comprehensively bested at the set piece for most of the match.
Leicester’s three tries were carbon copies of each other, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath’s three were works of art. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath scored the tries, either side of Cracknell's score for Leicester. Then, on the back of those penalties, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith powered over to score just before and just after the break.
The Tense Finish
That earned Tigers a narrow advantage, which they held for the majority of the second period. It appeared inevitable before Bath secured sufficient possession to score their fourth. In fact, their breakthrough came with a rare 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. After earning the penalty that put Bath ahead in a situation he relishes, the unfortunate prop conceded where he is not. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
