Against the backdrop of a classic English rugby's greatest contests, this match involving the Tigers versus the visitors proved to be as much about an emotional tribute during half-time than the on-field action on play.
Martin Johnson led a contingent comprising Leicester old boys in honour of the great Lewis Moody, after he revealed his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.
When Moody last pulled on the Tigers' jersey here, a decade and a half past, prior to joining their rivals Bath for the last two years of a storied career, Leicester remained close to the peak of their powers, while Bath found themselves enduring a long drought without the title. Times have changed since. Bath came into the match as title holders, the first time they've held that status since the 1990s.
A Truly Emotional Reception at Welford Road
Leicester, riding a powerful emotional surge, offered them a classic, robust reception, embracing the role of the unfancied team in their own stadium, the 18,000 Midlanders further emboldened by Moody's heartfelt admission at half-time that, no matter where he may live, Welford Road will always be his rugby home.
In retrospect, Bath were always up against it. True to form, during a final, desperate attack deep in Bath territory, the Tigers managed to coax a crucial penalty out of the Bath defence.
A Dramatic Climax
Billy Searle, who replaced the excellent James O’Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for Leicester, darted blind, and Thomas du Toit made a high tackle, for which offence he saw yellow. From the final play, Searle landed the penalty on an angle to steal the win.
It felt like being transported back of Moody’s pomp. Certainly, the home team, who moved up the table in the mid-table bun fight, can take great encouragement that a familiar frontal assault remains effective, no matter the pedigree of the opponent.
A Tale of Two Styles
Bath were a different class when in possession. Therefore, Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour which saw them trail 17-7, learned to deprive them of any. A deluge of penalties conceded by Bath kept Bath on the back foot, their forwards comprehensively bested in the scrums and lineouts 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. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath were the finishers, before and after Cracknell's score for Leicester. Then, capitalizing on the penalty count, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith forced their way over for tries either side of half-time.
A Nail-Biting Conclusion
Those scores gave Leicester a narrow advantage, an advantage they maintained for most of the second half. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath won enough ball to grab a fourth try. Actually, their breakthrough arrived via an infrequent penalty at the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. The fly-half, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, landed the kick with a little less than 10 minutes to play.
This merely galvanized Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, initiated by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins down the left. Having won the penalty that earned Bath the lead in a situation he relishes, the unfortunate prop conceded where he is not. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
