Amidst one of rugby union's greatest contests, the fixture involving the Tigers versus the visitors proved to be as much about an emotion during the interval as any on-field action during play.
The legendary Martin Johnson headed a contingent of Leicester old boys in honour of the great Lewis Moody, after he revealed his diagnosis with MND.
The last time Moody wore a Leicester shirt here, a decade and a half past, before moving to Bath for the last two years in a distinguished playing career, the home side remained close to their very best, whereas Bath found themselves enduring a long drought without the title. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, the first time they've held that status since the 1990s.
An Passionate Welcome at Welford Road
The Tigers, riding a powerful emotional surge, offered them a classic, robust reception, relishing their status as the unfancied team in their own stadium, the large home crowd greatly inspired by Moody's heartfelt admission at half-time 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, the Tigers managed to coax one last penalty out of the Bath defence.
The Decisive Moment
Billy Searle, who replaced the impressive James O'Connor, the seasoned Australian making his first start for the club, darted blind, and Thomas du Toit made a high tackle, for which offence he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick on an angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
We might as well have been transported back of Moody’s pomp. Certainly, Leicester, who moved up the table in a congested league, can take great encouragement that a familiar frontal assault can still yield results, regardless of the quality of the opponent.
Contrasting Styles
The visitors 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 against Bath put Bath under constant pressure, their forwards comprehensively bested at the set piece throughout the game.
Leicester’s three tries were carbon copies of each other, all scored from close range; Bath's three tries were studies in poetry. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath scored the tries, before and after Cracknell's score for Tigers. Subsequently, on the back of those penalties, Reffell and Smith powered over for tries either side of half-time.
The Nail-Biting Finish
That earned Tigers the lead, which they held for most of the second half. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath won enough ball to score their fourth. Actually, their breakthrough came with a rare penalty in the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. The fly-half, after missing two earlier kicks, successfully converted the penalty with a little less than 10 minutes to play.
That only inspired Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, initiated by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins on the left wing. After earning the penalty that put Bath ahead in a situation he relishes, poor Du Toit gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
