Amidst one of English rugby's most storied rivalries, this fixture between Leicester versus the visitors proved to be as much about an emotion at the interval than any rugby on play.
The legendary Martin Johnson headed a phalanx of Tigers former players to pay tribute to Lewis Moody, who has announced his diagnosis with MND.
When Moody last pulled on the Tigers' shirt here, 15 years ago, before moving to Bath for his final two seasons of a storied career, Leicester remained close to the peak of their powers, whereas Bath found themselves in the middle of a long drought without the title. Times have changed since. Bath came into the match as title holders, the first time they have called themselves that since the 1990s.
A Truly Emotional Welcome at Welford Road
The Tigers, on a wave of emotion, offered them a classic, robust reception, embracing the role of the unfancied team in their own stadium, the 18,000 Midlanders greatly inspired by Moody’s confession at half-time that, no matter where he may live, Welford Road will always be the home of his rugby heart.
In retrospect, the visiting side were always up against it. Sure enough, in a last-minute assault on the Bath line, Leicester won one last penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
The Climax
The replacement fly-half, who replaced the impressive James O’Connor, the seasoned Australian making his first start for Leicester, took a quick tap, and the Bath prop caught him high, for which offence he received a yellow card. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick on an angle to steal the win.
It felt like being transported back of Moody’s pomp. Certainly, the home team, who climb a little higher in a congested league, will be heartened that a familiar frontal assault can still yield results, regardless of the quality they face.
Contrasting Game Plans
Bath were a different class with ball in hand. So Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour in which they fell 17-7 behind, learned to deprive them of any. A deluge of penalties against the away side kept Bath under constant pressure, their forwards comprehensively bested in the scrums and lineouts throughout the game.
The Tigers' three touchdowns were carbon copies of each other, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath's three tries were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath were the finishers, before and after Cracknell's score for Tigers. Then, on the back of those penalties, Reffell and Smith forced their way over for tries just before and just after the break.
A Tense Conclusion
Those scores gave Leicester the lead, which they held for the majority of the second period. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath secured sufficient possession to grab a fourth try. In fact, their scoring opportunity came with a rare penalty in the scrum, their South Africans by then on. Finn Russell, after missing two earlier kicks, successfully converted the penalty inside the final ten minutes.
That only inspired Leicester for one last, brutish assault, initiated by the energetic Hassell-Collins on the left wing. After earning the penalty that put Bath ahead in a situation he relishes, poor Du Toit conceded where he is not. There could be only one result.
