Against the backdrop of a classic rugby union's most storied contests, the match between the Tigers versus Bath was heavily influenced by the emotion during the interval than any on-field action during play.
Martin Johnson led a contingent comprising Leicester former players in honour of the great Lewis Moody, after he announced that he has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease.
When Moody wore the Tigers' shirt at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, prior to joining Bath for his final two seasons of a storied career, the home side were more or less close to the peak of their powers, while their opponents were situated in the middle of a lengthy period without the title. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. Bath arrived as champions, marking the first occasion they've held that status in over two decades.
An Passionate Reception 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 large home crowd further emboldened by Moody’s confession during the break that regardless of his residence, this famous ground will always be his rugby home.
In retrospect, Bath were always up against it. Sure enough, in a last-minute assault on the Bath line, Leicester managed to coax a crucial penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
A Dramatic Decisive Moment
The replacement fly-half, who replaced the excellent James O’Connor, the seasoned Australian making his debut start for the club, darted blind, before the Bath prop caught him high, for which offence he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle landed the penalty from a difficult angle to steal the win.
It felt like being back in the days to Lewis Moody's prime. Without a doubt, the home team, who climb a little higher in a congested league, can take great encouragement that a familiar frontal assault can still yield results, regardless of the quality they face.
A Tale of Two Game Plans
The visitors were a different class with ball in hand. So Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour which saw them trail 17-7, adapted to starve them of possession. A succession of penalties against the away side put Bath under constant pressure, their forwards comprehensively bested in the scrums and lineouts throughout the game.
The Tigers' three touchdowns were remarkably similar, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath’s three were works of art. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath scored the tries, either side of Cracknell's score for Leicester. Then, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith powered over for tries just before and just after the break.
The Tense Conclusion
Those scores gave Leicester a narrow advantage, which they held for most of the second half. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath won enough ball to grab a fourth try. In fact, their breakthrough arrived via an infrequent penalty in the scrum, their South Africans by then on. The fly-half, after missing two earlier kicks, 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 on the left wing. Having won the penalty that earned Bath the lead where he is most comfortable, the unfortunate prop conceded where he is not. There could be only one result.
