Amidst one of rugby union's most storied contests, the fixture between the Tigers versus Bath was as much about an emotion at the interval as the on-field action during play.
Martin Johnson headed a contingent comprising Tigers old boys to pay tribute to Lewis Moody, after he revealed his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.
When Moody wore a Leicester shirt here, 15 years ago, before moving to Bath for the last two years in a distinguished playing career, the home side remained close to their very best, while their opponents were situated in the middle of a long drought without the title. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals came into the match as title holders, the first time they've held that status in over two decades.
A Truly Emotional Welcome at Welford Road
Leicester, riding a powerful emotional surge, offered them a classic, robust reception, embracing the role of underdogs in their own stadium, the large home crowd further emboldened by Moody’s confession at half-time that regardless of his residence, this famous ground will always be his rugby home.
In retrospect, Bath were always up against it. Sure enough, during a final, desperate attack on the Bath line, Leicester won one last penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
A Dramatic Climax
Billy Searle, on for the excellent James O’Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for Leicester, darted blind, before the Bath prop caught him high, an infringement for which he saw yellow. From the final play, Searle landed the penalty from a difficult angle to steal the win.
We might as well have been back in the days to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, Leicester, who moved up the table in the mid-table bun fight, can take great encouragement that their traditional, direct approach can still yield results, no matter the pedigree they face.
A Tale of Two Game Plans
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 Bath put Bath on the back foot, their forwards comprehensively bested at the set piece for most of the match.
Leicester’s three tries were carbon copies of each other, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath's three tries were works of art. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath scored the tries, either side of Cracknell's score for Tigers. Subsequently, on the back of those penalties, Reffell and Smith forced their way over to score either side of half-time.
The Tense Conclusion
Those scores gave Leicester the lead, which they held for the majority of the second period. It appeared inevitable before Bath won enough ball to score their fourth. Actually, their scoring opportunity arrived via an infrequent penalty in the scrum, their South Africans by then on. Finn Russell, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, landed the kick with a little less than 10 minutes to play.
This merely galvanized Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, set up by the energetic Hassell-Collins down the left. Having won the penalty that put Bath ahead where he is most comfortable, poor Du Toit conceded where he is not. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
