Against the backdrop of one of English rugby's most storied contests, the fixture involving the Tigers and the visitors was heavily influenced by the emotion at half-time as any rugby during play.
The legendary Martin Johnson headed a contingent of Tigers old boys to pay tribute to the great Lewis Moody, who has revealed his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.
The last time Moody last pulled on a Leicester jersey at Welford Road, 15 years ago, before moving to Bath for his final two seasons of a storied career, Leicester were more or less close to the peak of their powers, whereas Bath were situated enduring a lengthy period devoid of championship success. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals came into the match as title holders, the first time they have called themselves that since the 1990s.
A Truly Emotional Welcome on Home Turf
Leicester, on a wave of emotion, offered them an old-fashioned welcome, embracing the role of underdogs in their own stadium, the large home crowd greatly inspired by Moody's heartfelt admission during the break that, no matter where he may live, Welford Road remains his rugby home.
Looking back, the visiting side were always up against it. Sure enough, in a last-minute assault on the Bath line, the Tigers managed to coax one last penalty out of the Bath defence.
The Decisive Moment
The replacement fly-half, who replaced the excellent James O'Connor, the seasoned Australian making his first start for the club, took a quick tap, and the Bath prop caught him high, for which offence he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick from a difficult angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
We might as well have been transported back of Moody’s pomp. Certainly, the home team, who moved up the table in the mid-table bun fight, will be heartened that their traditional, direct approach remains effective, regardless of the quality they face.
Contrasting 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 deluge of penalties against Bath kept Bath under constant pressure, their forwards thoroughly outplayed at the set piece for most of the match.
Leicester’s three tries were remarkably similar, all scored from close range; Bath's three tries were works of art. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath were the finishers, either side of Ollie Cracknell’s try for Tigers. Then, capitalizing on the penalty count, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith powered over for tries just before and just after the break.
The Tense Conclusion
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. Actually, their breakthrough arrived via an infrequent penalty in the scrum, their South Africans by then on. Finn Russell, after missing two earlier kicks, successfully converted the penalty with a little less than 10 minutes to play.
This merely galvanized Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, set up by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins down the left. After earning the penalty that put Bath ahead in a situation he relishes, poor Du Toit conceded where he is not. There could be only one result.
