Amidst a classic rugby union's greatest contests, this match between the Tigers and the visitors proved to be heavily influenced by an emotional tribute during half-time than the on-field action on play.
The legendary Martin Johnson led a phalanx of Tigers old boys in honour of the great Lewis Moody, who has announced his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.
When Moody last pulled on the Tigers' jersey at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, before moving to Bath for the last two years in a distinguished playing career, Leicester remained still at their very best, while Bath found themselves enduring a lengthy period without the title. Times have changed since. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, marking the first occasion they have called themselves that since the 1990s.
An Passionate Welcome on Home Turf
The Tigers, riding a powerful emotional surge, served up an old-fashioned welcome, embracing the role of underdogs on their own pitch, the 18,000 Midlanders further emboldened by Moody's heartfelt admission during the break that, no matter where he may live, Welford Road remains the home of his rugby heart.
Looking back, Bath did not stand a chance. True to form, during a final, desperate attack on the Bath line, the Tigers won one last penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
A Dramatic Climax
The replacement fly-half, 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 caught him high, an infringement for which he received a yellow card. From the final play, Searle landed the penalty on an angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
We might as well have been transported back to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, Leicester, who climb a little higher in the mid-table bun fight, will be heartened that a familiar frontal assault remains effective, regardless of the quality they face.
A Tale of Two Styles
The visitors were a different class with ball in hand. Therefore, Leicester, following a confusing opening period which saw them trail 17-7, learned to deprive them of any. A deluge of penalties against Bath kept Bath under constant pressure, their forwards comprehensively bested at the set piece 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 tries were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath were the finishers, before and after Ollie Cracknell’s try for Leicester. Subsequently, capitalizing on the penalty count, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith powered over to score just before and just after the break.
A Nail-Biting Finish
Those scores gave Leicester the lead, which they held for most of the second half. It appeared inevitable before Bath secured sufficient possession to score their fourth. In fact, their breakthrough arrived via an infrequent penalty in the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. Finn Russell, after missing two earlier kicks, successfully converted the penalty with a little less than 10 minutes to play.
That only inspired Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, initiated by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins down the left. 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.
