Against the backdrop of one of rugby union's greatest contests, this fixture between the Tigers and the visitors proved to be heavily influenced by the emotion during the interval as any on-field action during the pitch.
The legendary Martin Johnson led a phalanx comprising Tigers old boys in honour of Lewis Moody, after he announced his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.
When Moody wore a Leicester shirt 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 remained still at their very best, whereas Bath found themselves in the middle of a lengthy period without the title. Times have changed since. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, marking the first occasion they have called themselves that in over two decades.
A Truly Emotional Reception at Welford Road
Leicester, on a wave of emotion, served up an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as underdogs in their own stadium, the large home crowd greatly inspired by Moody’s confession during the break that regardless of his residence, this famous ground remains his rugby home.
In retrospect, the visiting side were always up against it. True to form, during a final, desperate attack on the Bath line, Leicester won a crucial penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
A Dramatic Decisive Moment
Billy Searle, who replaced the excellent James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for Leicester, took a quick tap, before the Bath prop made a high tackle, for which offence he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick from a difficult angle to steal the win.
It felt like being transported back of Moody’s pomp. Without a doubt, Leicester, who climb a little higher in a congested league, can take great encouragement that a familiar frontal assault remains effective, regardless of the quality of the opponent.
Contrasting Styles
The visitors were a different class with ball in hand. So Leicester, following a confusing opening period in which they fell 17-7 behind, adapted to starve them of possession. A deluge of penalties against the away side kept Bath on the back foot, their pack thoroughly outplayed in the scrums and lineouts for most of the match.
The Tigers' three touchdowns were carbon copies of each other, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath’s three were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath scored the tries, before and after Cracknell's score for Leicester. Then, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith powered over to score just before and just after the break.
A Nail-Biting Finish
Those scores gave Leicester a narrow advantage, an advantage they maintained for most of the second half. It appeared inevitable before Bath secured sufficient possession to grab a fourth try. In fact, their scoring opportunity came with a rare penalty at the scrum, their South Africans by then on. Finn Russell, 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, initiated by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins down the left. After earning the penalty that earned Bath the lead where he is most comfortable, the unfortunate prop conceded where he is not. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
