Amidst one of rugby union's most storied contests, the fixture between the Tigers and the visitors proved to be as much about an emotion at the interval as the rugby during the pitch.
Martin Johnson led a phalanx of Tigers former players to pay tribute to the great Lewis Moody, after he announced his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.
The last time Moody wore a Leicester jersey here, a decade and a half past, before moving to Bath for his final two seasons of a storied career, Leicester were more or less still at the peak of their powers, while Bath found themselves in the middle of a long drought without the title. Times have changed since. Bath came into the match as title holders, the first time they have called themselves that since the 1990s.
A Truly Passionate Welcome on Home Turf
The Tigers, on a wave of emotion, served up a classic, robust reception, embracing the role of the unfancied team in their own stadium, the large home crowd further emboldened by Moody’s confession at half-time that, no matter where he may live, Welford Road remains the home of his rugby heart.
Looking back, Bath were always up against it. True to form, in a last-minute assault deep in Bath territory, the Tigers won a crucial penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
The Decisive Moment
The replacement fly-half, who replaced the impressive James O'Connor, the seasoned Australian making his first start for Leicester, took a quick tap, before Thomas du Toit caught him high, 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. Without a doubt, the home team, who moved up the table in a congested league, will be heartened that a familiar frontal assault remains effective, no matter the pedigree 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, adapted to starve them of possession. A succession of penalties conceded by the away side kept Bath on the back foot, their pack thoroughly outplayed at the set piece for most of the match.
Leicester’s three tries were carbon copies of each other, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath’s three were studies in poetry. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath were the finishers, either side of Cracknell's score for Leicester. Then, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith forced their way over to score either side of half-time.
A Nail-Biting Finish
That earned Tigers a narrow advantage, an advantage they maintained for most of the second half. It appeared inevitable before Bath won enough ball to score their fourth. In fact, their scoring opportunity 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, 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 earned Bath the lead in a situation he relishes, poor Du Toit conceded where he is not. There could be only one result.
