Amidst one of English rugby's most storied contests, this fixture involving Leicester and Bath was as much about the emotional tribute during half-time as any on-field action during the pitch.
Martin Johnson led a phalanx of Leicester former players to pay tribute to Lewis Moody, after he announced his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.
The last time Moody wore a Leicester jersey at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, before moving to their rivals Bath for his final two seasons in a distinguished playing career, the home side remained close to their very best, whereas Bath were situated enduring 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, the first time they have called themselves that in over two decades.
A Truly Emotional Reception at Welford Road
Leicester, 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 heartfelt admission at half-time that, no matter where he may live, Welford Road will always be the home of his rugby heart.
Looking back, Bath were always up against it. Sure enough, in a last-minute assault deep in Bath territory, Leicester managed to coax a crucial penalty out of the Bath defence.
The Climax
The replacement fly-half, on for the impressive James O'Connor, the seasoned Australian making his debut start for Leicester, took a quick tap, and the Bath prop made a high tackle, for which offence he received a yellow card. From the final play, Searle landed the penalty from a difficult angle to steal the win.
It felt like being back in the days to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, the home team, who climb a little higher in the mid-table bun fight, will be heartened that their traditional, direct approach can still yield results, no matter the pedigree of the opponent.
Contrasting Game Plans
The visitors were a different class when in possession. So Leicester, following a confusing opening period which saw them trail 17-7, adapted to starve them of possession. A deluge of penalties conceded by the away side put Bath under constant pressure, their pack 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 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 to score just before and just after the break.
The Tense Conclusion
Those scores gave Leicester a narrow advantage, an advantage they maintained for the majority of the second period. It appeared inevitable before Bath won enough ball to score their fourth. In fact, their breakthrough came with a rare penalty at the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. The fly-half, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, successfully converted the penalty with a little less than 10 minutes to play.
This merely galvanized Leicester for one last, brutish assault, initiated by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins on the left wing. Having won the penalty that earned Bath the lead in a situation he relishes, the unfortunate prop conceded where he is not. There could be only one result.
