Against the backdrop of one of rugby union's greatest rivalries, this fixture involving Leicester versus Bath was heavily influenced by the emotional tribute at half-time as the rugby on the pitch.
The legendary Martin Johnson led a phalanx of Leicester old boys to pay tribute to Lewis Moody, who has revealed that he has been diagnosed with MND.
The last time Moody last pulled on the Tigers' shirt here, a decade and a half past, prior to joining their rivals Bath for the last two years in a distinguished playing career, the home side were more or less still at the peak of their powers, whereas their opponents found themselves in the middle of a long drought without the title. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, marking the first occasion they have called themselves that in over two decades.
A Truly Passionate Welcome on Home Turf
Leicester, on a wave of emotion, offered them an old-fashioned welcome, 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.
In retrospect, Bath did not stand a chance. True to form, in a last-minute assault on the Bath line, Leicester managed to coax one last penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
A Dramatic Climax
Billy Searle, who replaced the impressive James O’Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his debut start for the club, darted blind, before the Bath prop caught him high, an infringement for which he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle landed the penalty on an angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
We might as well have been transported back of Moody’s pomp. Without a doubt, Leicester, who moved up the table in the mid-table bun fight, will be heartened that a familiar frontal assault can still yield results, no matter the pedigree they face.
Contrasting Styles
The visitors were sublime when in possession. Therefore, Leicester, following a confusing opening period which saw them trail 17-7, adapted to starve them of possession. A deluge of penalties against Bath kept Bath under constant pressure, their pack comprehensively bested in the scrums and lineouts throughout the game.
The Tigers' three touchdowns 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 scored the tries, either side of Cracknell's score for Tigers. Then, on the back of those penalties, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith powered over to score just before and just after the break.
A Tense Conclusion
That earned Tigers a narrow advantage, an advantage they maintained for the majority of the second period. It appeared inevitable before Bath won enough ball to score their fourth. In fact, their breakthrough arrived via an infrequent penalty in the scrum, their South Africans by then on. Finn Russell, after missing two earlier kicks, landed the kick inside the final ten minutes.
This merely galvanized 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. There could be only one result.
