Against the backdrop of a classic English rugby's greatest rivalries, this fixture involving the Tigers and the visitors was heavily influenced by the emotional tribute at the interval than any rugby on play.
The legendary Martin Johnson headed a phalanx comprising Leicester old boys in honour of the great Lewis Moody, after he announced that he has been diagnosed with MND.
The last time Moody wore the Tigers' shirt at Welford Road, 15 years ago, prior to joining their rivals Bath for his final two seasons of a storied career, Leicester remained 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, the first time they've held that status since the 1990s.
A Truly Passionate Reception on Home Turf
The Tigers, riding a powerful emotional surge, offered them a classic, robust reception, embracing the role of the unfancied team in their own stadium, the large home crowd further emboldened by Moody’s confession at half-time that regardless of his residence, Welford Road will always be the home of his rugby heart.
Looking back, Bath were always up against it. Sure enough, during a final, desperate attack on the Bath line, the Tigers won one last penalty out of the Bath defence.
A Dramatic Decisive Moment
Billy Searle, who replaced the impressive James O'Connor, the seasoned Australian making his first start for the club, took a quick tap, before Thomas du Toit made a high tackle, for which offence he received a yellow card. With the last kick, Searle landed the penalty on an angle to steal the win.
It felt like being back in the days of Moody’s pomp. Without a doubt, Leicester, who climb a little higher 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. So Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour in which they fell 17-7 behind, adapted to starve them of possession. A deluge of penalties conceded by the away side put Bath under constant pressure, their forwards thoroughly outplayed in the scrums and lineouts for most of the match.
The Tigers' three touchdowns were carbon copies of each other, all scored from close range; Bath’s three were works of art. Frost, Underhill, and 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 for tries either side of half-time.
The Tense Conclusion
Those scores gave Leicester the lead, an advantage they maintained for most of the second half. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath won enough ball to score their fourth. Actually, their scoring opportunity came with a rare penalty at the scrum, their South Africans by then on. The fly-half, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, successfully converted the penalty inside the final ten minutes.
This merely galvanized Leicester for one last, brutish assault, set up by the energetic Hassell-Collins on the left wing. Having won the penalty that earned Bath the lead in a situation he relishes, the unfortunate prop gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. There could be only one result.
