Amidst a classic rugby union's most storied contests, this fixture between Leicester and Bath proved to be as much about the emotional tribute at half-time than the on-field action on the pitch.
Martin Johnson led a contingent comprising Tigers former players in honour of Lewis Moody, after he announced his diagnosis with MND.
When Moody last pulled on the Tigers' shirt at Welford Road, 15 years ago, before moving to Bath for his final two seasons of a storied career, the home side remained close to their very best, whereas Bath found themselves in the middle of a long drought without the title. Times have changed since. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, the first time they have called themselves that since the 1990s.
A Truly Emotional Reception on Home Turf
Leicester, on a wave of emotion, offered them a classic, robust reception, relishing their status as the unfancied team in their own stadium, the 18,000 Midlanders greatly inspired by Moody's heartfelt admission during the break that, no matter where he may live, this famous ground will always be his rugby home.
Looking back, Bath did not stand a chance. Sure enough, in a last-minute assault on the Bath line, Leicester managed to coax one last penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
The Climax
The replacement fly-half, on for the impressive James O’Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his debut start for the club, darted blind, before Thomas du Toit made a high tackle, for which offence he received a yellow card. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick from a difficult angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
It felt like being 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, can take great encouragement that a familiar frontal assault can still yield results, no matter the pedigree of the opponent.
A Tale of Two Styles
The visitors were a different class with ball in hand. 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 put Bath on the back foot, their pack thoroughly outplayed in the scrums and lineouts throughout the game.
Leicester’s three tries were carbon copies of each other, all scored from close range; Bath’s three were works of art. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath scored the tries, either side of Ollie Cracknell’s try for Tigers. Then, capitalizing on the penalty count, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith powered over to score just before and just after the break.
A Tense Conclusion
Those scores gave Leicester the lead, an advantage they maintained for most of the second half. It appeared inevitable before Bath secured sufficient possession to score their fourth. Actually, their breakthrough arrived via an infrequent penalty at the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. Finn Russell, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, successfully converted the penalty inside the final ten minutes.
That only inspired Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, set up by the energetic Hassell-Collins on the left wing. After earning the penalty that earned Bath the lead where he is most comfortable, the unfortunate prop conceded where he is not. There could be only one result.
