Against the backdrop of one of English rugby's greatest rivalries, this fixture involving the Tigers and Bath proved to be heavily influenced by the emotion during half-time as any on-field action during play.
Martin Johnson headed a phalanx of Tigers former players in honour of the great Lewis Moody, who has revealed that he has been diagnosed with MND.
The last time Moody wore the Tigers' shirt here, a decade and a half past, prior to joining Bath for his final two seasons 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. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. Bath came into the match as title holders, marking the first occasion they have called themselves that in over two decades.
An Emotional Welcome on Home Turf
The Tigers, on a wave of emotion, served up an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as underdogs in their own stadium, the large home crowd greatly inspired by Moody's heartfelt admission at half-time that regardless of his residence, Welford Road remains his rugby home.
In retrospect, Bath were always up against it. Sure enough, during a final, desperate attack deep in Bath territory, Leicester won a crucial penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
The Decisive Moment
Billy Searle, on for the impressive James O'Connor, the seasoned Australian making his debut start for the club, took a quick tap, before the Bath prop caught him high, an infringement for which he received a yellow card. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick on an angle to steal the win.
We might as well have been back in the days to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, the home team, 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.
A Tale of Two Game Plans
The visitors were sublime with ball in hand. Therefore, Leicester, following a confusing opening period in which they fell 17-7 behind, adapted to starve them of possession. A deluge of penalties against Bath put Bath on the back foot, their pack comprehensively bested at the set piece for most of the match.
Leicester’s three tries were remarkably similar, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath's three tries were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath scored the tries, before and after Cracknell's score for Leicester. Subsequently, capitalizing on the penalty count, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith powered over to score either side of half-time.
The Tense Finish
That earned Tigers the lead, which they held for most of the second half. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath secured sufficient possession to grab a fourth try. Actually, their scoring opportunity came with a rare penalty in 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 earned Bath the lead where he is most comfortable, poor Du Toit conceded where he is not. There could be only one result.
