Amidst a classic rugby union's greatest rivalries, the match between Leicester and the visitors was heavily influenced by an emotion during the interval as the rugby on the pitch.
Martin Johnson headed a phalanx of Tigers former players to pay tribute to the great Lewis Moody, who has announced that he has been diagnosed with MND.
The last time Moody wore a Leicester shirt at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, prior to joining Bath for the last two years of a storied career, Leicester were more or less still at their very best, while Bath found themselves enduring 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've held that status since the 1990s.
An Emotional Welcome at Welford Road
Leicester, riding a powerful emotional surge, served up a classic, robust reception, embracing the role of the unfancied team on their own pitch, the large home crowd greatly inspired by Moody's heartfelt admission at half-time that, no matter where he may live, this famous ground remains his rugby home.
Looking back, the visiting side did not stand a chance. True to form, in a last-minute assault on the Bath line, the Tigers managed to coax one last penalty out of the Bath defence.
A Dramatic Climax
Billy Searle, who replaced the impressive James O’Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for the club, darted blind, and Thomas du Toit caught him high, for which offence he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle landed the penalty on an angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
We might as well have been back in the days to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, Leicester, who climb a little higher in the mid-table bun fight, will be heartened that their traditional, direct approach remains effective, no matter the pedigree of the opponent.
A Tale of Two Game Plans
Bath 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 succession of penalties against the away side put Bath on the back foot, their forwards comprehensively bested 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 tries were works of art. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath were the finishers, before and after Ollie Cracknell’s try for Leicester. Subsequently, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith forced their way over to score either side of half-time.
The Nail-Biting Conclusion
That earned Tigers a narrow advantage, which they held for most of the second half. It appeared inevitable before Bath won enough ball to score their fourth. In fact, their breakthrough arrived via an infrequent penalty at the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. The fly-half, after missing two earlier kicks, successfully converted the penalty inside the final ten minutes.
That only inspired Leicester for one last, brutish assault, set up by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins down the left. After earning the penalty that earned Bath the lead where he is most comfortable, poor Du Toit gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. There could be only one result.
