Against the backdrop of a classic English rugby's greatest rivalries, the fixture involving the Tigers and the visitors was heavily influenced by an emotional tribute at half-time as any rugby on the pitch.
Martin Johnson headed a phalanx comprising Leicester old boys in honour of the great Lewis Moody, who has 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 still at their very best, while Bath found themselves in the middle of a long drought devoid of championship success. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals came into the match as title holders, the first time they have called themselves that in over two decades.
An Emotional Reception at Welford Road
Leicester, riding a powerful emotional surge, offered them an old-fashioned welcome, embracing the role of underdogs on their own pitch, the large home crowd greatly inspired by Moody's heartfelt admission during the break that regardless of his residence, this famous ground will always be the home of his rugby heart.
In retrospect, the visiting side were always up against it. True to form, during a final, desperate attack deep in Bath territory, Leicester won a crucial penalty out of the Bath defence.
A Dramatic Decisive Moment
Billy Searle, on for the impressive James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for the club, darted blind, and the Bath prop caught him high, an infringement for which he received a yellow card. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick from a difficult angle to steal the win.
We might as well have been transported back to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, the home team, who climb a little higher in the mid-table bun fight, will be heartened that a familiar frontal assault remains effective, no matter the pedigree they face.
Contrasting Game Plans
The visitors were sublime with ball in hand. So Leicester, following a confusing opening period in which they fell 17-7 behind, adapted to starve them of possession. A succession of penalties against Bath kept Bath under constant pressure, their forwards comprehensively bested in the scrums and lineouts throughout the game.
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 Tigers. Then, capitalizing on the penalty count, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith powered over for tries just before and just after the break.
The Tense Conclusion
Those scores gave Leicester a narrow advantage, an advantage they maintained for most of the second half. It appeared inevitable before Bath secured sufficient possession to grab a fourth try. Actually, their scoring opportunity 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 to launch one final, powerful assault, initiated by the energetic Hassell-Collins down the left. After earning 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.
