Against the backdrop of one of English rugby's greatest rivalries, this fixture involving the Tigers and the visitors was heavily influenced by the emotion during the interval than the rugby on play.
Martin Johnson led a contingent of Tigers old boys in honour of Lewis Moody, after he revealed that he has been diagnosed with MND.
The last time Moody last pulled on a Leicester shirt at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, before moving to Bath for his final two seasons of a storied career, the home side remained close to their very best, while their opponents were situated enduring a long drought without the title. Times have changed since. Bath came into the match as title holders, the first time they've held that status since the 1990s.
An Passionate Welcome on Home Turf
The Tigers, riding a powerful emotional surge, served up an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as underdogs on their own pitch, the 18,000 Midlanders greatly inspired by Moody's heartfelt admission at half-time that regardless of his residence, this famous ground will always be his rugby home.
In retrospect, the visiting side were always up against it. True to form, in a last-minute assault deep in Bath territory, Leicester won one last penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
A Dramatic Decisive Moment
Billy Searle, who replaced the excellent James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his debut start for Leicester, darted blind, before Thomas du Toit made a high tackle, for which offence he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick on an angle to steal the win.
We might as well have been transported back 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 can still yield results, regardless of the quality of the opponent.
A Tale of Two Game Plans
Bath 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 the away side put Bath under constant pressure, their pack comprehensively bested at the set piece throughout the game.
Leicester’s three tries were remarkably similar, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath’s three were works of art. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath scored the tries, either side of Cracknell's score for Tigers. Then, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith powered over to score either side of half-time.
A Tense Finish
Those scores gave Leicester the lead, 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. Actually, their scoring opportunity arrived via an infrequent penalty in the scrum, their South Africans by then on. The fly-half, 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 on the left wing. After earning the penalty that put Bath ahead where he is most comfortable, the unfortunate prop conceded where he is not. There could be only one result.
