Against the backdrop of a classic English rugby's most storied contests, this match involving the Tigers versus Bath was as much about an emotional tribute at half-time as any rugby during the pitch.
Martin Johnson headed a phalanx of Leicester old boys to pay tribute to Lewis Moody, who has announced his diagnosis with MND.
When Moody wore a Leicester shirt here, a decade and a half past, prior to joining Bath for his final two seasons of a storied career, Leicester remained close to the peak of their powers, while their opponents were situated in the middle of a lengthy period devoid of championship success. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals came into the match as title holders, marking the first occasion they've held that status in over two decades.
A Truly Passionate Welcome at Welford Road
The Tigers, on a wave of emotion, offered them an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as the unfancied team in their own stadium, the 18,000 Midlanders greatly inspired by Moody’s confession during the break 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 on the Bath line, Leicester managed to coax a crucial penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
A Dramatic Decisive Moment
Billy Searle, on for the excellent James O’Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for the club, took a quick tap, and Thomas du Toit caught him high, for which offence he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle landed the penalty on an angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
It felt like being transported back to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, Leicester, who climb a little higher in the mid-table bun fight, can take great encouragement that a familiar frontal assault remains effective, no matter the pedigree they face.
A Tale of Two Game Plans
The visitors were sublime with ball in hand. So 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 put Bath on the back foot, their forwards thoroughly outplayed in the scrums and lineouts 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. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath were the finishers, either side of Cracknell's score for Tigers. Then, on the back of those penalties, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith powered over to score just before and just after the break.
The Nail-Biting Conclusion
Those scores gave Leicester a narrow advantage, which they held for most of the second half. It appeared inevitable before Bath secured sufficient possession to grab a fourth try. In fact, their breakthrough arrived via an infrequent penalty at the scrum, their South Africans by then on. Finn Russell, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, landed the kick inside the final ten minutes.
That only inspired Leicester for one last, brutish assault, set up by the energetic Hassell-Collins down the left. Having won the penalty that put Bath ahead where he is most comfortable, poor Du Toit conceded where he is not. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
