Amidst a classic rugby union's most storied rivalries, this fixture between the Tigers and Bath was as much about the emotion during the interval as any rugby during the pitch.
Martin Johnson headed a contingent of Leicester former players in honour of Lewis Moody, after he announced that he has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease.
The last time Moody wore the Tigers' shirt at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, prior to joining their rivals Bath for the last two years of a storied career, the home side remained still at the peak of their powers, while their opponents were situated in the middle of a long drought without the title. Times have changed since. The Tigers’ great rivals came into the match as title holders, the first time they have called themselves that since the 1990s.
A Truly Emotional Reception on Home Turf
Leicester, on a wave of emotion, served up an old-fashioned welcome, embracing the role of underdogs in their own stadium, the 18,000 Midlanders further emboldened by Moody's heartfelt admission during the break that, no matter where he may live, Welford Road will always be his rugby home.
Looking back, the visiting side were always up against it. Sure enough, in a last-minute assault deep in Bath territory, Leicester managed to coax one last penalty out of the Bath defence.
A Dramatic Decisive Moment
The replacement fly-half, who replaced the excellent James O'Connor, the seasoned Australian making his first start for the club, took a quick tap, before Thomas du Toit caught him high, an infringement for which 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 of Moody’s pomp. Without a doubt, Leicester, who climb a little higher in the mid-table bun fight, will be heartened that a familiar frontal assault can still yield results, regardless of the quality they face.
Contrasting Game Plans
The visitors were a different class when in possession. Therefore, Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour which saw them trail 17-7, adapted to starve them of possession. A deluge of penalties against the away side kept Bath under constant pressure, their forwards thoroughly outplayed in the scrums and lineouts throughout the game.
The Tigers' three touchdowns were carbon copies of each other, all scored from close range; Bath's three tries were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath were the finishers, either side of Ollie Cracknell’s try for Tigers. Then, capitalizing on the penalty count, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith powered over for tries just before and just after the break.
A Tense Conclusion
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 won enough ball to grab a fourth try. Actually, their breakthrough came with a rare penalty at the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. The fly-half, after missing two earlier kicks, successfully converted the penalty inside the final ten minutes.
That only inspired Leicester for one last, brutish assault, initiated by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins down the left. After earning the penalty that earned Bath the lead where he is most comfortable, poor Du Toit gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
