Against the backdrop of one of rugby union's most storied rivalries, the match involving the Tigers versus the visitors proved to be as much about an emotion during the interval than any rugby on the pitch.
Martin Johnson led a contingent of Tigers old boys in honour of Lewis Moody, who has announced that he has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease.
The last time Moody wore the Tigers' shirt at Welford Road, 15 years ago, prior to joining their rivals Bath for his final two seasons of a storied career, Leicester were more or less close to their very best, while Bath found themselves in the middle of a lengthy period without the title. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. Bath arrived as champions, the first time they've held that status since the 1990s.
An Emotional Welcome on Home Turf
The Tigers, on a wave of emotion, served up 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, Welford Road will always be his rugby home.
In retrospect, Bath did not stand a chance. True to form, during a final, desperate attack on the Bath line, the Tigers won one last penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
A Dramatic Climax
Billy Searle, on for the impressive James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his debut start for Leicester, darted blind, before the Bath prop made a high tackle, for which offence he received a yellow card. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick from a difficult angle to steal the win.
It felt like being back in the days to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, Leicester, who moved up the table in the mid-table bun fight, can take great encouragement that a familiar frontal assault can still yield results, regardless of the quality they face.
A Tale of Two Styles
The visitors were sublime 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 under constant pressure, their pack comprehensively bested in the scrums and lineouts for most of the match.
Leicester’s three tries were carbon copies of each other, all scored from close range; Bath's three tries were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath scored the tries, before and after Ollie Cracknell’s try for Leicester. Subsequently, on the back of those penalties, Reffell and Smith forced their way over for tries either side of half-time.
A Nail-Biting Finish
Those scores gave Leicester the lead, an advantage they maintained 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 breakthrough came with a rare penalty in 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 to launch one final, powerful assault, set up by the energetic Hassell-Collins down the left. After earning 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.
