Amidst a classic English rugby's greatest rivalries, the match between Leicester versus the visitors was as much about the emotional tribute during the interval than any rugby on play.
The legendary Martin Johnson led a phalanx comprising Tigers old boys to pay tribute to the great Lewis Moody, who has announced his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.
The last time Moody wore a Leicester jersey at Welford Road, 15 years ago, prior to joining their rivals Bath for his final two seasons in a distinguished playing career, Leicester remained close to the peak of their powers, while Bath were situated in the middle of a long drought without the title. Times have changed since. Bath came into the match as title holders, the first time they have called themselves that since the 1990s.
An Emotional Welcome at Welford Road
Leicester, riding a powerful emotional surge, served up an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as underdogs on their own pitch, the large home crowd greatly inspired by Moody's heartfelt admission during the break that regardless of his residence, Welford Road will always be his rugby home.
In retrospect, Bath did not stand a chance. Sure enough, in a last-minute assault deep in Bath territory, Leicester managed to coax a crucial penalty out of the Bath defence.
A Dramatic Climax
The replacement fly-half, who replaced the impressive James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his debut start for Leicester, darted blind, and the Bath prop made a high tackle, for which offence he received a yellow card. From the final play, Searle slotted the penalty kick on an angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
We might as well have been transported back to Lewis Moody's prime. Without a doubt, Leicester, who climb a little higher in the mid-table bun fight, can take great encouragement that a familiar frontal assault can still yield results, no matter the pedigree of the opponent.
A Tale of Two Game Plans
The visitors were a different class with ball in hand. So Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour in which they fell 17-7 behind, adapted to starve them of possession. A deluge of penalties against the away side put Bath under constant pressure, their forwards thoroughly outplayed in the scrums and lineouts throughout the game.
The Tigers' three touchdowns were remarkably similar, all scored from close range; Bath's three tries were works of art. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath were the finishers, either side of Ollie Cracknell’s try for Tigers. Then, on the back of those penalties, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith powered over for tries either side of half-time.
The Tense Finish
Those scores gave Leicester the lead, an advantage they maintained for the majority of the second period. It appeared inevitable before Bath secured sufficient possession to score their fourth. In fact, their scoring opportunity came with a rare penalty in the scrum, their South Africans by then on. The fly-half, after missing two earlier kicks, landed the kick with a little less than 10 minutes to play.
That only inspired Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, initiated by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins down the left. Having won the penalty that earned Bath the lead where he is most comfortable, poor Du Toit gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
