Amidst a classic English rugby's greatest contests, the match between the Tigers versus Bath was heavily influenced by the emotion during the interval as the on-field action on the pitch.
The legendary Martin Johnson headed a phalanx comprising Tigers old boys in honour of the great Lewis Moody, who has announced that he has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease.
The last time Moody wore the Tigers' jersey here, a decade and a half past, before moving to their rivals Bath for the last two years of a storied career, Leicester were more or less still at the peak of their powers, while Bath were situated in the middle of a lengthy period devoid of championship success. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. Bath came into the match as title holders, the first time they've held that status since the 1990s.
An Emotional Reception at Welford Road
Leicester, on a wave of emotion, served up a classic, robust reception, embracing the role of underdogs on their own pitch, the 18,000 Midlanders further emboldened by Moody's heartfelt admission at half-time that, no matter where he may live, this famous ground will always be his rugby home.
Looking back, Bath did not stand a chance. Sure enough, during a final, desperate attack deep in Bath territory, Leicester managed to coax one last penalty out of the Bath defence.
A Dramatic Climax
The replacement fly-half, on for the excellent James O’Connor, the seasoned Australian making his debut start for Leicester, darted blind, and the Bath prop made a high tackle, for which offence he received a yellow card. From the final play, Searle landed the penalty on an angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
We might as well have been back in the days to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, the home team, who moved up the table in the mid-table bun fight, will be heartened that a familiar frontal assault remains effective, no matter the pedigree they face.
A Tale of Two Styles
Bath were a different class when in possession. So Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour in which they fell 17-7 behind, adapted to starve them of possession. A succession of penalties against the away side kept Bath under constant pressure, their forwards thoroughly outplayed at the set piece for most of the match.
Leicester’s three tries were carbon copies of each other, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath’s three were works of art. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath scored the tries, either side of Ollie Cracknell’s try for Tigers. Then, capitalizing on the penalty count, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith powered over for tries either side of half-time.
A Nail-Biting Conclusion
Those scores gave Leicester 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 grab a fourth try. In fact, their breakthrough 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 inside the final ten minutes.
This merely galvanized Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, initiated by the lively Ollie 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. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
