Amidst one of rugby union's most storied contests, this fixture involving Leicester versus Bath was as much about the emotion at the interval than the on-field action during play.
The legendary Martin Johnson led a contingent of Leicester old boys to pay tribute to Lewis Moody, after he revealed that he has been diagnosed with MND.
When Moody last pulled on the Tigers' shirt at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, before moving to their rivals Bath for the last two years of a storied career, the home side were more or less close to their very best, whereas their opponents were situated enduring a long drought devoid of championship success. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals came into the match as title holders, the first time they have called themselves that since the 1990s.
A Truly Emotional Welcome on Home Turf
Leicester, riding a powerful emotional surge, offered them 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 regardless of his residence, Welford Road will always be his rugby home.
In retrospect, Bath were always up against it. True to form, in a last-minute assault on the Bath line, the Tigers won one last penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
The Climax
Billy Searle, on for the impressive James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for the club, took a quick tap, and Thomas du Toit caught him high, for which offence he saw yellow. From the final play, Searle landed the penalty from a difficult angle to steal the win.
We might as well have been back in the days of Moody’s pomp. Certainly, the home team, who moved up the table in a congested league, can take great encouragement that their traditional, direct approach remains effective, regardless of the quality of the opponent.
Contrasting Styles
Bath were a different class with ball in hand. Therefore, Leicester, following a confusing opening period which saw them trail 17-7, adapted to starve them of possession. A succession of penalties conceded by the away side put Bath on the back foot, their forwards thoroughly outplayed in the scrums and lineouts 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 were studies in poetry. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath were the finishers, before and after Ollie Cracknell’s try for Leicester. Then, on the back of those penalties, Reffell and Smith powered over for tries either side of half-time.
The Tense Conclusion
That earned Tigers the lead, which they held for most of the second half. It appeared inevitable before Bath won enough ball to score their fourth. In fact, their breakthrough came with a rare penalty in the scrum, their South Africans by then on. The fly-half, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, successfully converted the penalty inside the final ten minutes.
This merely galvanized Leicester for one last, brutish assault, set up by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins down the left. After earning the penalty that earned Bath the lead where he is most comfortable, poor Du Toit conceded where he is not. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
