Against the backdrop of one of English rugby's greatest rivalries, this match involving the Tigers versus the visitors proved to be as much about an emotional tribute at the interval as any on-field action during play.
The legendary Martin Johnson led a phalanx comprising Leicester old boys to pay tribute to the great Lewis Moody, who has revealed his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.
The last time Moody last pulled on a Leicester shirt at Welford Road, 15 years ago, prior to joining their rivals Bath for the last two years of a storied career, the home side were more or less close to their very best, whereas their opponents found themselves enduring a long drought without the title. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. Bath arrived as champions, the first time they have called themselves that since the 1990s.
A Truly Emotional Reception at Welford Road
Leicester, riding a powerful emotional surge, offered them an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as the unfancied team in their own stadium, the large home crowd further emboldened by Moody’s confession during the break that regardless of his residence, this famous ground remains his rugby home.
In retrospect, Bath did not stand a chance. True to form, in a last-minute assault on the Bath line, the Tigers managed to coax a crucial penalty out of the Bath defence.
A Dramatic Climax
Billy Searle, who replaced the excellent James O’Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for the club, darted blind, before Thomas du Toit 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 snatch a dramatic victory.
It felt like being back in the days of Moody’s pomp. Without a doubt, Leicester, who climb a little higher in the mid-table bun fight, can take great encouragement that a familiar frontal assault remains effective, regardless of the quality of the opponent.
Contrasting Styles
The visitors were a different class with ball in hand. So Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour in which they fell 17-7 behind, adapted to starve them of possession. A succession of penalties against the away side kept Bath under constant pressure, their forwards thoroughly outplayed in the scrums and lineouts for most of the match.
The Tigers' three touchdowns were remarkably similar, all scored from close range; Bath’s three were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath were the finishers, before and after Ollie Cracknell’s try for Leicester. Then, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith powered over to score either side of half-time.
The Tense Finish
Those scores gave Leicester the lead, which they held for most of the second half. It appeared inevitable before Bath won enough ball to score their fourth. Actually, their scoring opportunity came with a rare penalty in the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. The fly-half, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, landed the kick with a little less than 10 minutes to play.
That only inspired Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, set up by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins down the left. After earning the penalty that earned Bath the lead in a situation he relishes, the unfortunate prop gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
