Amidst a classic rugby union's greatest rivalries, the fixture between Leicester and Bath was as much about an emotion at half-time than the rugby on the pitch.
The legendary Martin Johnson headed a phalanx comprising Leicester old boys to pay tribute to the great Lewis Moody, who has revealed that he has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease.
The last time Moody wore a Leicester jersey at Welford Road, 15 years ago, before moving to their rivals 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 lengthy period devoid of championship success. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, marking the first occasion they have called themselves that in over two decades.
An Emotional Reception at Welford Road
The Tigers, on a wave of emotion, served up an old-fashioned welcome, embracing the role of the unfancied team on their own pitch, the large home crowd further emboldened by Moody's heartfelt admission at half-time that, no matter where he may live, Welford Road will always be his rugby home.
Looking back, Bath did not stand a chance. True to form, during a final, desperate attack on the Bath line, Leicester managed to coax a crucial penalty out of the Bath defence.
A Dramatic Climax
Billy Searle, on for the excellent James O'Connor, the seasoned Australian making his first start for Leicester, took a quick tap, before Thomas du Toit made a high tackle, for which offence he received a yellow card. From the final play, Searle landed the penalty from a difficult angle to steal the win.
It felt like being transported back to Lewis Moody's prime. 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, regardless of the quality of the opponent.
Contrasting Game Plans
The visitors were sublime when in possession. So Leicester, following a confusing opening period in which they fell 17-7 behind, adapted to starve them of possession. A succession of penalties conceded by Bath put Bath under constant pressure, their forwards thoroughly outplayed 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 studies in poetry. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath scored the tries, before and after 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 Conclusion
That earned Tigers a narrow advantage, an advantage they maintained for most of the second half. It appeared inevitable before Bath secured sufficient possession to score their fourth. Actually, their breakthrough arrived via an infrequent penalty at the scrum, their South Africans by then on. Finn Russell, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, successfully converted the penalty 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 put Bath ahead where he is most comfortable, poor Du Toit gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. There could be only one result.
