Amidst one of rugby union's most storied rivalries, this match between Leicester versus the visitors was heavily influenced by the emotion at the interval than the rugby on the pitch.
Martin Johnson led a phalanx of Tigers old boys to pay tribute to the great Lewis Moody, who has announced that he has been diagnosed with MND.
The last time Moody last pulled on the Tigers' jersey at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, before moving to Bath for the last two years of a storied career, Leicester remained close to their very best, while Bath were situated in the middle of a long drought devoid of championship success. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, the first time they've held that status since the 1990s.
A Truly Emotional Reception at Welford Road
Leicester, on a wave of emotion, offered them a classic, robust reception, embracing the role of the unfancied team in their own stadium, the 18,000 Midlanders further emboldened by Moody’s confession at half-time that regardless of his residence, this famous ground 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, Leicester won one last penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
The Climax
Billy Searle, who replaced the excellent James O'Connor, the seasoned Australian making his first start for the club, darted blind, before Thomas du Toit made a high tackle, an infringement for which he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle landed the penalty on an angle to steal the win.
We might as well have been back in the days of Moody’s pomp. Without a doubt, the home team, who moved up the table in the mid-table bun fight, will be heartened that a familiar frontal assault remains effective, regardless of the quality of the opponent.
Contrasting Game Plans
Bath were sublime when in possession. So Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour which saw them trail 17-7, adapted to starve them of possession. A succession of penalties against Bath kept Bath under constant pressure, their forwards thoroughly outplayed at the set piece throughout the game.
Leicester’s three tries were carbon copies of each other, all scored from close range; Bath’s three were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath scored the tries, before and after Ollie Cracknell’s try for Tigers. Subsequently, on the back of those penalties, Reffell and Smith forced their way over to score just before and just after the break.
A Tense Finish
That earned Tigers a narrow advantage, which they held 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 breakthrough arrived via an infrequent penalty at the scrum, their South Africans by then on. Finn Russell, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, successfully converted the penalty inside the final ten minutes.
That only inspired Leicester for one last, brutish assault, initiated by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins on the left wing. 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.
