Amidst a classic English rugby's greatest contests, this fixture between Leicester and the visitors was as much about the emotional tribute at the interval as any rugby on play.
Martin Johnson led a phalanx comprising Leicester old boys to pay tribute to Lewis Moody, after he revealed that he has been diagnosed with MND.
The last time Moody wore the Tigers' jersey at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, before moving to Bath for the last two years of a storied career, the home side were more or less close to the peak of their powers, while Bath found themselves enduring a lengthy period devoid of championship success. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, marking the first occasion they've held that status in over two decades.
An Emotional Reception at Welford Road
Leicester, riding a powerful emotional surge, offered them an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as underdogs on their own pitch, the large home crowd greatly inspired by Moody's heartfelt admission at half-time that regardless of his residence, this famous ground will always be the home of his rugby heart.
In retrospect, Bath were always up against it. True to form, during a final, desperate attack on the Bath line, Leicester won one last penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
The Climax
Billy Searle, on for the excellent James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his debut start for the club, took a quick tap, before the Bath prop made a high tackle, an infringement for which he received a yellow card. From the final play, Searle landed the penalty on an angle to steal the win.
We might as well have been transported back to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, the home team, who climb a little higher in the mid-table bun fight, can take great encouragement that a familiar frontal assault remains effective, regardless of the quality of the opponent.
Contrasting Styles
Bath were sublime when in possession. Therefore, Leicester, following a confusing opening period in which they fell 17-7 behind, learned to deprive them of any. A deluge of penalties against Bath put Bath under constant pressure, their forwards thoroughly outplayed at the set piece throughout the game.
Leicester’s three tries were carbon copies of each other, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath's three tries were studies in poetry. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath scored the tries, before and after Cracknell's score for Tigers. Subsequently, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith forced their way over for tries just before and just after the break.
The Nail-Biting Conclusion
That earned Tigers a narrow advantage, which they held for the majority of the second period. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath won enough ball to grab a fourth try. Actually, their breakthrough came with a rare penalty in the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. The fly-half, after missing two earlier kicks, 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 energetic Hassell-Collins down the left. Having won the penalty that earned Bath the lead in a situation he relishes, the unfortunate prop gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. There could be only one result.
