Against the backdrop of one of rugby union's greatest rivalries, the match involving Leicester and the visitors was as much about an emotion at the interval as the on-field action on the pitch.
Martin Johnson headed a phalanx comprising Leicester former players to pay tribute to the great Lewis Moody, after he revealed his diagnosis with MND.
When Moody wore a Leicester shirt here, a decade and a half past, before moving to their rivals Bath for the last two years of a storied career, the home side remained still at their very best, whereas their opponents were situated enduring a lengthy period without the title. 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 Emotional Reception 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 18,000 Midlanders greatly inspired by Moody’s confession during the break that, no matter where he may live, this famous ground will always be the home of his rugby heart.
Looking back, the visiting side were always up against it. True to form, in a last-minute assault on the Bath line, the Tigers won one last penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
A Dramatic Climax
The replacement fly-half, on for the excellent James O’Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for Leicester, darted blind, before the Bath prop made a high tackle, for which offence he received a yellow card. With the last kick, Searle landed the penalty from a difficult angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
We might as well have been transported back to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, Leicester, who moved up the table in a congested league, will be heartened that their traditional, direct approach remains effective, regardless of the quality they face.
A Tale of Two Styles
Bath were sublime with ball in hand. So Leicester, following a confusing opening period in which they fell 17-7 behind, learned to deprive them of any. A succession of penalties conceded by the away side kept Bath under constant pressure, their forwards thoroughly outplayed in the scrums and lineouts for most of the match.
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, before and after Cracknell's score for Tigers. Subsequently, on the back of those penalties, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith forced their way over to score just before and just after the break.
A Tense Conclusion
Those scores gave Leicester the lead, an advantage they maintained for the majority of the second period. It appeared inevitable before Bath secured sufficient possession to grab a fourth try. In fact, their scoring opportunity came with a rare penalty at the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. Finn Russell, after missing two earlier kicks, landed the kick with a little less than 10 minutes to play.
This merely galvanized Leicester for one last, brutish assault, initiated by the energetic Hassell-Collins down the left. Having won the penalty that put Bath ahead in a situation he relishes, the unfortunate prop conceded where he is not. There could be only one result.
