Against the backdrop of one of English rugby's greatest rivalries, the match involving the Tigers versus the visitors was heavily influenced by an emotional tribute during half-time than any on-field action during play.
The legendary Martin Johnson led a contingent comprising Tigers old boys in honour of the great Lewis Moody, after he announced that he has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease.
When Moody last pulled on 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 were more or less close to the peak of their powers, whereas Bath were situated in the middle of a long drought devoid of championship success. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. Bath came into the match as title holders, the first time they have called themselves that since the 1990s.
An Passionate Welcome at Welford Road
Leicester, on a wave of emotion, offered them a classic, robust reception, embracing the role of underdogs on their own pitch, the large home crowd further emboldened by Moody’s confession at half-time that, no matter where he may live, Welford Road remains the home of his rugby heart.
In retrospect, Bath did not stand a chance. Sure enough, in a last-minute assault deep in Bath territory, the Tigers won one last penalty out of the Bath defence.
A Dramatic Decisive Moment
The replacement fly-half, who replaced the impressive 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 landed the penalty on an angle to steal the win.
It felt like being back in the days to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, Leicester, who climb a little higher in the mid-table bun fight, can take great encouragement that a familiar frontal assault can still yield results, regardless of the quality they face.
A Tale of Two Styles
Bath were a different class with ball in hand. So Leicester, following a confusing opening period which saw them trail 17-7, adapted to starve them of possession. A succession of penalties against Bath put Bath on the back foot, their forwards thoroughly outplayed in the scrums and lineouts throughout the game.
Leicester’s three tries were carbon copies of each other, all scored from close range; Bath’s three were studies in poetry. 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 powered over to score just before and just after the break.
The Tense Conclusion
Those scores gave Leicester a narrow advantage, which they held for most of the second half. It appeared inevitable before Bath secured sufficient possession to grab a fourth try. Actually, their scoring opportunity came with a rare 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 to launch one final, powerful assault, initiated by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins down the left. Having won the penalty that put Bath ahead in a situation he relishes, poor Du Toit gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
