Amidst one of rugby union's greatest rivalries, the fixture involving the Tigers and Bath was as much about the emotional tribute at the interval than the rugby on the pitch.
Martin Johnson headed a contingent of Tigers former players to pay tribute to the great Lewis Moody, who has announced his diagnosis with MND.
When Moody wore a Leicester shirt here, a decade and a half past, prior to joining Bath for the last two years of a storied career, the home side were more or less still at their very best, while their opponents were situated in the middle of a lengthy period devoid of championship success. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, marking the first occasion they've held that status in over two decades.
A Truly Emotional Welcome at Welford Road
Leicester, riding a powerful emotional surge, offered them a classic, robust reception, embracing the role of underdogs on their own pitch, the large home crowd greatly inspired by Moody’s confession during the break that regardless of his residence, this famous ground remains his rugby home.
Looking back, the visiting side were always up against it. True to form, during a final, desperate attack on the Bath line, Leicester won a crucial penalty out of the Bath defence.
The Decisive Moment
Billy Searle, who replaced the excellent James O’Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for Leicester, darted blind, and the Bath prop caught him high, an infringement for which he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle landed the penalty from a difficult angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
We might as well have been transported back of Moody’s pomp. Certainly, Leicester, who climb a little higher in the mid-table bun fight, can take great encouragement that their traditional, direct approach remains effective, regardless of the quality of the opponent.
Contrasting Game Plans
Bath were a different class when in possession. Therefore, Leicester, following a confusing opening period in which they fell 17-7 behind, learned to deprive them of any. A succession of penalties against the away side put Bath on the back foot, their forwards thoroughly outplayed in the scrums and lineouts for most of the match.
The Tigers' three touchdowns 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. Subsequently, on the back of those penalties, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith forced their way over to score just before and just after the break.
The Nail-Biting Conclusion
Those scores gave Leicester a narrow advantage, which they held for most of the second half. It appeared inevitable before Bath won enough ball to score their fourth. In fact, their breakthrough arrived via an infrequent penalty in the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. 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 lively Ollie Hassell-Collins down the left. Having won the penalty that earned Bath the lead in a situation he relishes, poor Du Toit conceded where he is not. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
