Amidst one of English rugby's greatest rivalries, the match involving the Tigers versus the visitors was as much about the emotion during the interval than the on-field action during the pitch.
The legendary Martin Johnson headed a contingent comprising Tigers old boys in honour of the great Lewis Moody, after he revealed his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.
The last time Moody wore the Tigers' shirt at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, prior to joining their rivals Bath for his final two seasons of a storied career, the home side were more or less still at their very best, while Bath were situated in the middle of a long drought devoid of championship success. Times have changed since. The Tigers’ great rivals came into the match as title holders, the first time they've held that status since the 1990s.
An Emotional Welcome at Welford Road
Leicester, riding a powerful emotional surge, served up a classic, robust reception, embracing the role of the unfancied team in their own stadium, the large home crowd further emboldened by Moody’s confession during the break that regardless of his residence, Welford Road will always be his rugby home.
In retrospect, the visiting side were always up against it. Sure enough, in a last-minute assault deep in Bath territory, the Tigers won one last penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
A Dramatic Climax
The replacement fly-half, who replaced the impressive James O'Connor, the seasoned Australian making his first start for the club, darted blind, and Thomas du Toit made a high tackle, for which offence he received a yellow card. With the last kick, Searle landed the penalty on an angle to steal the win.
We might as well have been back in the days to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, the home team, who climb a little higher in the mid-table bun fight, can take great encouragement that their traditional, direct approach remains effective, regardless of the quality they face.
Contrasting Game Plans
Bath were sublime with ball in hand. Therefore, Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour which saw them trail 17-7, learned to deprive them of any. A succession of penalties against the away side kept Bath under constant pressure, their forwards thoroughly outplayed at the set piece throughout the game.
Leicester’s three tries were carbon copies of each other, all scored from close range; Bath’s three were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath scored the tries, either side of Ollie Cracknell’s try for Tigers. Subsequently, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith forced their way over for tries just before and just after the break.
The Nail-Biting Finish
That earned Tigers the lead, an advantage they maintained for the majority of the second period. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath won enough ball to score their fourth. In fact, their breakthrough came with a rare penalty in the scrum, their South Africans by then on. The fly-half, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, successfully converted the penalty with a little less than 10 minutes to play.
That only inspired Leicester for one last, brutish assault, set up by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins on the left wing. Having won the penalty that put Bath ahead where he is most comfortable, the unfortunate prop conceded where he is not. There could be only one result.
