Against the backdrop of one of rugby union's most storied rivalries, this fixture between Leicester and the visitors was heavily influenced by the emotional tribute at the interval as the on-field action on the pitch.
The legendary Martin Johnson led a contingent of Tigers old boys in honour of Lewis Moody, after he revealed his diagnosis with MND.
The last time Moody last pulled on the Tigers' shirt here, a decade and a half past, before moving to Bath for the last two years in a distinguished playing career, Leicester were more or less still at their very best, whereas their opponents were situated in the middle of a lengthy period without the title. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. Bath arrived as champions, marking the first occasion they have called themselves that in over two decades.
An Passionate Welcome at Welford Road
Leicester, on a wave of emotion, offered them a classic, robust reception, relishing their status as the unfancied team on their own pitch, the large home crowd greatly inspired by Moody’s confession at half-time that regardless of his residence, Welford Road remains his rugby home.
In retrospect, Bath were always up against it. Sure enough, in a last-minute assault on the Bath line, the Tigers managed to coax a crucial penalty out of the Bath defence.
A Dramatic Decisive Moment
Billy Searle, on for the excellent James O’Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for Leicester, took a quick tap, and the Bath prop made a high tackle, for which offence he received a yellow card. With the last kick, Searle landed the penalty on an angle to steal the win.
It felt like being back in the days to Lewis Moody's prime. Without a doubt, Leicester, who moved up the table in a congested league, will be heartened that a familiar frontal assault can still yield results, no matter the pedigree of the opponent.
Contrasting Styles
Bath were a different class when in possession. So Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour which saw them trail 17-7, adapted to starve them of possession. A deluge of penalties against Bath put Bath on the back foot, their forwards thoroughly outplayed in the scrums and lineouts throughout the game.
The Tigers' three touchdowns were remarkably similar, all scored from close range; Bath’s three were studies in poetry. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath scored the tries, either side of Ollie Cracknell’s try for Leicester. Subsequently, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith forced their way over for tries just before and just after the break.
A Nail-Biting Finish
That earned Tigers the lead, an advantage they maintained for the majority of the second period. It appeared inevitable before Bath won enough ball to score their fourth. Actually, 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.
That only inspired Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, initiated by the energetic Hassell-Collins on the left wing. After earning the penalty that earned Bath the lead in a situation he relishes, poor Du Toit gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
