Against the backdrop of one of rugby union's greatest rivalries, the fixture involving the Tigers versus Bath was heavily influenced by an emotional tribute during half-time as any rugby during play.
Martin Johnson headed a contingent comprising Leicester old boys in honour of Lewis Moody, after he announced that he has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease.
The last time Moody last pulled on a Leicester shirt at Welford Road, 15 years ago, before moving to Bath for his final two seasons in a distinguished playing career, Leicester were more or less close to the peak of their powers, while their opponents found themselves in the middle of 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 in over two decades.
A Truly Passionate Reception on Home Turf
Leicester, on a wave of emotion, offered them a classic, robust reception, relishing their status as the unfancied team on their own pitch, the large home crowd further emboldened by Moody’s confession at half-time that regardless of his residence, this famous ground remains his rugby home.
In retrospect, Bath were always up against it. Sure enough, during a final, desperate attack on the Bath line, the Tigers won a crucial penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
The Climax
The replacement fly-half, who replaced the excellent James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his debut 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 landed the penalty from a difficult angle to steal the win.
It felt like being back in the days of Moody’s pomp. Without a doubt, the home team, who moved up the table in a congested league, will be heartened that their traditional, direct approach remains effective, no matter the pedigree they face.
A Tale of Two Game Plans
The visitors were a different class with ball in hand. Therefore, Leicester, following a confusing opening period in which they fell 17-7 behind, learned to deprive them of any. A deluge of penalties conceded by Bath put Bath on the back foot, their pack thoroughly outplayed in the scrums and lineouts throughout the game.
The Tigers' three touchdowns were carbon copies of each other, all scored from close range; Bath's three tries 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 forced their way over to score either side of half-time.
The Tense Finish
That earned Tigers the lead, which they held for the majority of the second period. It appeared inevitable before Bath secured sufficient possession to score their fourth. Actually, their scoring opportunity arrived via an infrequent penalty at the scrum, their South Africans by then on. The fly-half, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, successfully converted the penalty inside the final ten minutes.
This merely galvanized Leicester for one last, brutish assault, set up by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins down the left. Having won the penalty that earned Bath the lead in a situation he relishes, poor Du Toit gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
