Amidst one of English rugby's greatest rivalries, this fixture between the Tigers versus the visitors was heavily influenced by the emotion at half-time than the on-field action on the pitch.
Martin Johnson led a phalanx of Leicester former players to pay tribute to Lewis Moody, who has announced his diagnosis with MND.
The last time Moody last pulled on the Tigers' jersey at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, before moving to their rivals Bath for the last two years of a storied career, the home side were more or less still at their very best, while Bath found themselves enduring a long drought without the title. Times have changed since. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, the first time they've held that status since the 1990s.
An Emotional Reception on Home Turf
The Tigers, 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 heartfelt admission at half-time that regardless of his residence, Welford Road will always be the home of his rugby heart.
In retrospect, the visiting side did not stand a chance. Sure enough, during a final, desperate attack on the Bath line, the Tigers won one last penalty out of the Bath defence.
The Climax
The replacement fly-half, who replaced the impressive James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for the club, took a quick tap, before the Bath prop made a high tackle, an infringement for which he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick from a difficult angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
It felt like being transported back to Lewis Moody's prime. Without a doubt, the home team, who climb a little higher in a congested league, can take great encouragement that their traditional, direct approach can still yield results, regardless of the quality they face.
A Tale of Two Game Plans
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 against Bath put Bath under constant pressure, their forwards comprehensively bested in the scrums and lineouts throughout the game.
Leicester’s three tries were remarkably similar, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath's three tries were works of art. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath scored the tries, before and after Cracknell's score 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 Tense Conclusion
Those scores gave Leicester a narrow advantage, which they held for the majority of the second period. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath secured sufficient possession to score their fourth. In fact, their breakthrough arrived via an infrequent penalty at the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. The fly-half, after missing two earlier kicks, landed the kick inside the final ten minutes.
That only inspired Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, initiated by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins on the left wing. Having won the penalty that earned Bath the lead where he is most comfortable, the unfortunate prop gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. There could be only one result.