Against the backdrop of a classic English rugby's greatest rivalries, this fixture between Leicester versus the visitors was as much about an emotion at the interval as any on-field action during the pitch.
The legendary Martin Johnson headed a phalanx comprising Leicester former players in honour of Lewis Moody, who has announced that he has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease.
When Moody wore the Tigers' jersey 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 the peak of their powers, whereas Bath found themselves enduring a long drought devoid of championship success. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals came into the match as title holders, marking the first occasion they've held that status since the 1990s.
A Truly Passionate Reception on Home Turf
Leicester, riding a powerful emotional surge, served up an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as the unfancied team 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 the home of his rugby heart.
Looking back, the visiting side 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
Billy Searle, on for the impressive James O’Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for the club, took a quick tap, and Thomas du Toit made a high tackle, for which offence he received a yellow card. From the final play, Searle slotted the penalty kick on an angle to steal the win.
It felt like being back in the days of Moody’s pomp. Without a doubt, Leicester, who moved up the table in a congested league, can take great encouragement that their traditional, direct approach remains effective, regardless of the quality they face.
Contrasting Game Plans
Bath were sublime with ball in hand. So Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour which saw them trail 17-7, adapted to starve them of possession. A succession of penalties conceded by Bath put Bath on the back foot, their pack comprehensively bested in the scrums and lineouts for most of the match.
Leicester’s three tries were carbon copies of each other, all scored from close range; Bath's three tries were works of art. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath scored the tries, either side of Ollie Cracknell’s try for Tigers. Subsequently, capitalizing on the penalty count, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith powered over to score just before and just after the break.
The Tense Finish
Those scores gave Leicester a narrow advantage, an advantage they maintained for the majority of the second period. It appeared inevitable before Bath secured sufficient possession to score their fourth. Actually, their scoring opportunity 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 with a little less than 10 minutes to play.
That only inspired Leicester for one last, brutish assault, set up by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins down the left. After earning 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.
