Against the backdrop of one of English rugby's most storied contests, the match between the Tigers versus Bath proved to be as much about the emotion during half-time than the rugby during play.
Martin Johnson led a contingent comprising Leicester former players in honour of Lewis Moody, who has announced his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.
The last time Moody wore the Tigers' shirt here, 15 years ago, prior to joining Bath for the last two years in a distinguished playing career, the home side were more or less still at their very best, whereas their opponents were situated enduring a long drought devoid of championship success. Times have changed since. Bath came into the match as title holders, marking the first occasion they've held that status in over two decades.
An Emotional Welcome at Welford Road
The Tigers, on a wave of emotion, 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 confession during the break that, no matter where he may live, Welford Road remains the home of his rugby heart.
Looking back, Bath were always up against it. True to form, during a final, desperate attack deep in Bath territory, the Tigers won one last penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
The Climax
Billy Searle, on for the excellent James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for the club, took a quick tap, 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 on an angle to steal the win.
We might as well have been back in the days to Lewis Moody's prime. Without a doubt, Leicester, who climb a little higher in a congested league, will be heartened that a familiar frontal assault 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, following a confusing opening period which saw them trail 17-7, learned to deprive them of any. A deluge of penalties conceded by the away side kept Bath on the back foot, their forwards thoroughly outplayed in the scrums and lineouts throughout the game.
The Tigers' three touchdowns were remarkably similar, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath's three tries were studies in poetry. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath scored the tries, either side of Ollie Cracknell’s try for Tigers. Subsequently, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith powered over to score just before and just after the break.
A Nail-Biting 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 won enough ball to grab a fourth try. Actually, their breakthrough arrived via an infrequent penalty at the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. Finn Russell, after missing two earlier kicks, landed the kick with a little less than 10 minutes to play.
This merely galvanized Leicester for one last, brutish assault, set up by the energetic Hassell-Collins down the left. After earning 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.
