Amidst a classic rugby union's greatest rivalries, this fixture involving Leicester and the visitors proved to be as much about an emotional tribute at the interval as the on-field action on the pitch.
The legendary Martin Johnson headed a contingent comprising Leicester old boys in honour of Lewis Moody, who has revealed his diagnosis with MND.
When Moody last pulled on a Leicester jersey here, a decade and a half past, prior to joining their rivals 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, while Bath were situated in the middle of a lengthy period without the title. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, marking the first occasion they have called themselves that since the 1990s.
An Passionate Welcome on Home Turf
The Tigers, on a wave of emotion, offered them an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as underdogs on their own pitch, the 18,000 Midlanders further emboldened by Moody’s confession at half-time that regardless of his residence, Welford Road will always be the home of his rugby heart.
In retrospect, Bath were always up against it. True to form, in a last-minute assault deep in Bath territory, the Tigers won 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 Leicester, darted blind, before Thomas du Toit made a high tackle, an infringement for which he received a yellow card. From the final play, Searle landed the penalty from a difficult angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
It felt like being transported back 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 they face.
Contrasting Styles
The visitors were sublime with ball in hand. Therefore, Leicester, following a confusing opening period in which they fell 17-7 behind, learned to deprive them of any. A deluge of penalties conceded by the away side put Bath under constant pressure, their forwards comprehensively bested in the scrums and lineouts throughout the game.
The Tigers' three touchdowns were carbon copies of each other, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath's three tries were works of art. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath scored the tries, before and after Cracknell's score for Tigers. Subsequently, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith powered over for tries either side of half-time.
The Tense Finish
That earned Tigers the lead, which they held for the majority of the second period. It seemed only a matter of time 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. The fly-half, after missing two earlier kicks, landed the kick with a little less than 10 minutes to play.
That only inspired Leicester for one last, brutish 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, poor Du Toit conceded where he is not. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
