Amidst one of rugby union's greatest contests, this fixture involving Leicester and the visitors was as much about an emotional tribute during the interval than any rugby during play.
Martin Johnson led a contingent comprising Leicester former players in honour of the great Lewis Moody, who has revealed that he has been diagnosed with MND.
When Moody last pulled on a Leicester shirt at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, before moving to Bath for the last two years of a storied career, the home side remained close to the peak of their powers, while Bath found themselves in the middle of a long drought devoid of championship success. Times have changed since. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, the first time they've held that status since the 1990s.
A Truly Passionate Welcome at Welford Road
Leicester, riding a powerful emotional surge, served up a classic, robust reception, relishing their status as underdogs in their own stadium, the large home crowd further emboldened by Moody's heartfelt admission during the break that, no matter where he may live, Welford Road remains his rugby home.
In retrospect, the visiting side were always up against it. True to form, during a final, desperate attack on the Bath line, Leicester won one last penalty out of the Bath defence.
The Climax
Billy Searle, who replaced the excellent James O’Connor, the seasoned Australian making his first start for Leicester, darted blind, before the Bath prop made a high tackle, an infringement for which he received a yellow card. With the last kick, Searle landed the penalty on an angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
We might as well have been back in the days of Moody’s pomp. Certainly, Leicester, who climb a little higher in a congested league, will be heartened that their traditional, direct approach can still yield results, no matter the pedigree of the opponent.
Contrasting Styles
The visitors were a different class with ball in hand. So Leicester, following a confusing opening period in which they fell 17-7 behind, adapted to starve them of possession. A succession of penalties conceded by the away side kept Bath on the back foot, their forwards comprehensively bested at the set piece throughout the game.
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, before and after Ollie Cracknell’s try for Tigers. Then, on the back of those penalties, Reffell and Smith forced their way over to score either side of half-time.
A Tense Finish
Those scores gave Leicester the lead, an advantage they maintained for most of the second half. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath secured sufficient possession to grab a fourth try. 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.
This merely galvanized Leicester for one last, brutish assault, initiated by the energetic Hassell-Collins down the left. After earning the penalty that put Bath ahead where he is most comfortable, poor Du Toit conceded where he is not. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
