Amidst one of English rugby's greatest rivalries, this match involving the Tigers versus Bath proved to be as much about an emotion at the interval as any rugby on play.
The legendary Martin Johnson led a phalanx of Leicester former players to pay tribute to the great Lewis Moody, who has revealed his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.
When Moody last pulled on the Tigers' shirt at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, before moving to their rivals Bath for his final two seasons of a storied career, Leicester were more or less close to the peak of their powers, whereas their opponents found themselves enduring a lengthy period devoid of championship success. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, marking the first occasion they have called themselves that since the 1990s.
A Truly Emotional Reception on Home Turf
The Tigers, on a wave of emotion, served up a classic, robust reception, embracing the role of underdogs in their own stadium, the 18,000 Midlanders greatly inspired by Moody’s confession at half-time that, no matter where he may live, this famous ground will always be his rugby home.
Looking back, Bath were always up against it. True to form, during a final, desperate attack deep in Bath territory, Leicester won one last penalty out of the Bath defence.
The Climax
Billy Searle, on for the excellent James O'Connor, the seasoned Australian making his debut start for the club, took a quick tap, before the Bath prop made a high tackle, an infringement for which he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick on an angle to steal the win.
It felt like being back in the days to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, the home team, who moved up the table in a congested league, will be heartened that their traditional, direct approach can still yield results, no matter the pedigree they face.
Contrasting Styles
Bath were a different class when in possession. So Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour which saw them trail 17-7, learned to deprive them of any. A deluge of penalties against the away side kept Bath on the back foot, their forwards comprehensively bested at the set piece for most of the match.
The Tigers' three touchdowns were remarkably similar, all scored from close range; Bath's three tries were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath scored the tries, either side of Ollie Cracknell’s try for Leicester. Then, on the back of those penalties, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith forced their way over to score either side of half-time.
A Nail-Biting Finish
That earned Tigers a narrow advantage, an advantage they maintained for the majority of the second period. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath secured sufficient possession to score their fourth. In fact, their scoring opportunity came with a rare penalty at the scrum, their South Africans by then on. The fly-half, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, landed the kick inside the final ten minutes.
This merely galvanized Leicester for one last, brutish assault, initiated by the energetic Hassell-Collins down the left. Having won the penalty that put Bath ahead in a situation he relishes, the unfortunate prop conceded where he is not. There could be only one result.
