Amidst a classic English rugby's greatest rivalries, this fixture involving Leicester versus the visitors was as much about the emotional tribute during half-time as the on-field action on play.
Martin Johnson led a contingent of Leicester old boys in honour of Lewis Moody, who has revealed his diagnosis with MND.
The last time Moody wore a Leicester jersey at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, prior to joining Bath for the last two years in a distinguished playing career, the home side were more or less close to the peak of their powers, whereas their opponents found themselves enduring a lengthy period devoid of championship success. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. Bath arrived as champions, the first time they've held that status since the 1990s.
A Truly Passionate Reception on Home Turf
The Tigers, riding a powerful emotional surge, served up a classic, robust reception, embracing the role of the unfancied team on their own pitch, the large home crowd greatly inspired by Moody’s confession during the break that regardless of his residence, Welford Road remains the home of his rugby heart.
In retrospect, the visiting side were always up against it. True to form, in a last-minute assault deep in Bath territory, the Tigers managed to coax one last penalty out of the Bath defence.
The Climax
The replacement fly-half, on for the excellent James O’Connor, the seasoned Australian making his debut 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 slotted the penalty kick on an angle to steal the win.
We might as well have been back in the days of Moody’s pomp. Without a doubt, the home team, who moved up the table in the mid-table bun fight, will be heartened that their traditional, direct approach can still yield results, regardless of the quality of the opponent.
A Tale of Two Game Plans
Bath were a different class with ball in hand. Therefore, Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour in which they fell 17-7 behind, learned to deprive them of any. A deluge of penalties conceded by the away side kept Bath on the back foot, their forwards thoroughly outplayed at the set piece for most of the match.
The Tigers' three touchdowns were remarkably similar, all scored from close range; Bath’s three were works of art. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath were the finishers, before and after Ollie Cracknell’s try for Leicester. Subsequently, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith powered over for tries just before and just after the break.
A Tense Finish
That earned Tigers 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. In fact, their scoring opportunity came with a rare penalty in the scrum, their South Africans by then on. The fly-half, 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, set up by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins on the left wing. After earning the penalty that put Bath ahead where he is most comfortable, poor Du Toit conceded where he is not. There could be only one result.
