Against the backdrop of a classic English rugby's most storied contests, this match between Leicester and Bath was as much about the emotional tribute during the interval as the rugby during play.
Martin Johnson headed a phalanx of Leicester old boys in honour of the great Lewis Moody, who has revealed his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.
The last time Moody last pulled on the Tigers' shirt at Welford Road, 15 years ago, before moving to Bath for the last two years of a storied career, Leicester were more or less still at their very best, while Bath were situated enduring a lengthy period devoid of championship success. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. Bath came into the match as title holders, the first time they have called themselves that in over two decades.
An Passionate Welcome 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 large home crowd further emboldened by Moody’s confession at half-time that regardless of his residence, this famous ground will always be his rugby home.
Looking back, the visiting side were always up against it. Sure enough, during a final, desperate attack on the Bath line, Leicester won a crucial penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
The Climax
The replacement fly-half, who replaced the excellent James O’Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his debut start for Leicester, darted blind, before the Bath prop caught him high, for which offence he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick from a difficult angle to steal the win.
It felt like being transported back to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, Leicester, who moved up the table 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 Game Plans
The visitors were a different class when in possession. So Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour which saw them trail 17-7, adapted to starve them of possession. A deluge of penalties conceded by Bath kept Bath under constant pressure, their forwards comprehensively bested at the set piece for most of the match.
The Tigers' three touchdowns were carbon copies of each other, all scored from close range; Bath’s three were studies in poetry. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath were the finishers, either side of Ollie Cracknell’s try for Leicester. Then, on the back of those penalties, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith powered over for tries just before and just after the break.
The Tense Finish
Those scores gave Leicester a narrow advantage, an advantage they maintained for the majority of the second period. It appeared inevitable before Bath secured sufficient possession 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. Finn Russell, after missing two earlier kicks, landed the kick with a little less than 10 minutes to play.
This merely galvanized Leicester for one last, brutish assault, set up 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. There could be only one result.
