Amidst a classic English rugby's greatest rivalries, the match between the Tigers and the visitors was heavily influenced by an emotion during half-time as the on-field action during the pitch.
Martin Johnson led a contingent comprising Tigers old boys in honour of Lewis Moody, after he revealed that he has been diagnosed with MND.
The last time Moody wore a Leicester jersey here, 15 years ago, before moving to their rivals Bath for his final two seasons in a distinguished playing career, Leicester were more or less close to their very best, while their opponents found themselves in the middle of a lengthy period devoid of championship success. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, marking the first occasion they have called themselves that in over two decades.
An Passionate Reception on Home Turf
The Tigers, riding a powerful emotional surge, offered them an old-fashioned welcome, embracing the role of the unfancied team in their own stadium, the 18,000 Midlanders greatly inspired by Moody's heartfelt admission at half-time that regardless of his residence, Welford Road remains the home of his rugby heart.
Looking back, the visiting side did not stand a chance. True to form, in a last-minute assault on the Bath line, Leicester won a crucial penalty out of the Bath defence.
The Climax
Billy Searle, who replaced the impressive James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for Leicester, took a quick tap, and the Bath prop made a high tackle, an infringement for which he received a yellow card. From the final play, Searle slotted the penalty kick on an angle to steal the win.
We might as well have been back in the days of Moody’s pomp. Certainly, 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.
Contrasting Styles
The visitors 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 deluge of penalties against the away side put Bath under constant pressure, their forwards comprehensively bested in the scrums and lineouts for most of the match.
Leicester’s three tries were carbon copies of each other, all scored from close range; Bath's three tries were works of art. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath scored the tries, either side of Cracknell's score for Leicester. Then, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith forced their way over to score just before and just after the break.
A Tense Finish
Those scores gave Leicester a narrow advantage, an advantage they maintained for most of the second half. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath secured sufficient possession to grab a fourth try. Actually, their breakthrough came with a rare penalty in the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. Finn Russell, after missing two earlier kicks, landed the kick inside the final ten minutes.
This merely galvanized Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, set up by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins down the left. Having won the penalty that put Bath ahead in a situation he relishes, poor Du Toit gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
