Amidst a classic rugby union's greatest rivalries, the fixture involving Leicester and the visitors proved to be as much about the emotion during half-time than any on-field action during play.
The legendary Martin Johnson led a phalanx of Tigers former players to pay tribute to Lewis Moody, after he announced that he has been diagnosed with MND.
When Moody last pulled on the Tigers' jersey at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, before moving to Bath for the last two years of a storied career, Leicester remained close to the peak of their powers, while their opponents found themselves enduring a long drought without the title. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals came into the match as title holders, marking the first occasion they've held that status since the 1990s.
A Truly Passionate Reception on Home Turf
The Tigers, riding a powerful emotional surge, served up an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as underdogs in their own stadium, the large home crowd further emboldened by Moody’s confession at half-time that regardless of his residence, this famous ground remains his rugby home.
Looking back, Bath were always up against it. Sure enough, during a final, desperate attack deep in Bath territory, the Tigers managed to coax one last penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
The Decisive Moment
The replacement fly-half, on for the excellent James O’Connor, the seasoned Australian making his first start for the club, took a quick tap, before Thomas du Toit caught him high, an infringement for which 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 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 a familiar frontal assault remains effective, regardless of the quality of the opponent.
A Tale of Two Styles
The visitors were sublime when in possession. So Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour which saw them trail 17-7, adapted to starve them of possession. A deluge of penalties conceded by 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 studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath were the finishers, either side of Ollie Cracknell’s try for Leicester. 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, an advantage they maintained for the majority of the second period. It appeared inevitable before Bath secured sufficient possession to grab a fourth try. In fact, their scoring opportunity came with a rare penalty in the scrum, their South Africans by then on. Finn Russell, after missing two earlier kicks, landed the kick inside the final ten minutes.
That only inspired Leicester for one last, brutish assault, initiated by the energetic Hassell-Collins on the left wing. Having won the penalty that put Bath ahead in a situation he relishes, the unfortunate prop conceded where he is not. There could be only one result.
