Against the backdrop of one of rugby union's greatest rivalries, this fixture involving the Tigers and the visitors proved to be as much about the emotion during half-time as the on-field action during the pitch.
Martin Johnson headed a contingent comprising Tigers old boys in honour of the great Lewis Moody, who has announced that he has been diagnosed with MND.
When Moody last pulled on a Leicester shirt at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, before moving to Bath for his final two seasons in a distinguished playing career, Leicester remained close to their very best, while their opponents were situated enduring a lengthy period without the title. Times have changed since. Bath came into the match as title holders, marking the first occasion they have called themselves that since the 1990s.
An Emotional Reception on Home Turf
Leicester, riding a powerful emotional surge, served up an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as underdogs in their own stadium, the 18,000 Midlanders further emboldened by Moody’s confession at half-time that, no matter where he may live, this famous ground remains his rugby home.
In retrospect, Bath were always up against it. Sure enough, in a last-minute assault deep in Bath territory, the Tigers won one last penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
The Decisive Moment
The replacement fly-half, who replaced the excellent James O'Connor, the seasoned Australian making his first start for Leicester, took a quick tap, before Thomas du Toit made a high tackle, an infringement for which he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick on an angle to steal the win.
It felt like being back in the days of Moody’s pomp. Certainly, the home team, who climb a little higher in the mid-table bun fight, can take great encouragement that a familiar frontal assault can still yield results, no matter the pedigree of the opponent.
Contrasting Game Plans
Bath were a different class with ball in hand. So Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour in which they fell 17-7 behind, learned to deprive them of any. A deluge of penalties conceded by the away side put Bath under constant pressure, their forwards thoroughly outplayed at the set piece for most of the match.
Leicester’s three tries were remarkably similar, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath’s three were studies in poetry. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath were the finishers, before and after Ollie Cracknell’s try for Leicester. Subsequently, on the back of those penalties, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith forced their way over for tries just before and just after the break.
A Nail-Biting Conclusion
That earned Tigers a narrow advantage, which they held for most of the second half. It appeared inevitable before Bath won enough ball to score their fourth. Actually, their breakthrough arrived via an infrequent 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 on the left wing. After earning the penalty that put Bath ahead where he is most comfortable, the unfortunate prop conceded where he is not. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
