Against the backdrop of one of rugby union's greatest rivalries, this fixture between the Tigers versus Bath was heavily influenced by the emotion at half-time than the on-field action on the pitch.
Martin Johnson headed a contingent of Tigers old boys to pay tribute to the great Lewis Moody, who has announced his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.
When Moody wore a Leicester jersey at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, prior to joining Bath for the last two years in a distinguished playing career, the home side remained close to the peak of their powers, while their opponents found themselves in the middle of a long drought without the title. Times have changed since. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, marking the first occasion they've held that status in over two decades.
An Emotional Reception on Home Turf
The Tigers, on a wave of emotion, served up an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as the unfancied team in their own stadium, the large home crowd greatly inspired by Moody’s confession at half-time that regardless of his residence, this famous ground remains the home of his rugby heart.
Looking back, Bath were always up against it. Sure enough, in a last-minute assault deep in Bath territory, 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 debut start for Leicester, darted blind, before the Bath prop caught him high, for which offence he received a yellow card. From the final play, Searle slotted the penalty kick on an angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
We might as well have been transported back of Moody’s pomp. Without a doubt, Leicester, who climb a little higher in a congested league, will be heartened that their traditional, direct approach remains effective, regardless of the quality of the opponent.
Contrasting Game Plans
Bath were a different class 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 conceded by Bath put Bath under constant pressure, their pack comprehensively bested in the scrums and lineouts for most of the match.
Leicester’s three tries were remarkably similar, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath’s three were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath were the finishers, before and after Cracknell's score for Tigers. Subsequently, on the back of those penalties, Reffell and Smith powered over to score just before and just after the break.
The Nail-Biting Finish
Those scores gave Leicester the lead, an advantage they maintained for the majority of the second period. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath won enough ball to grab a fourth try. Actually, their breakthrough came with a rare penalty in the scrum, their South Africans by then on. Finn Russell, after missing two earlier kicks, landed the kick with a little less than 10 minutes to play.
That only inspired Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, initiated by the energetic Hassell-Collins on the left wing. Having won the penalty that earned Bath the lead in a situation he relishes, poor Du Toit gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
