Against the backdrop of a classic English rugby's most storied rivalries, this fixture between Leicester and Bath was as much about the emotional tribute during the interval than the on-field action on play.
Martin Johnson led a contingent comprising Tigers former players in honour of Lewis Moody, after he revealed that he has been diagnosed with MND.
The last time Moody last pulled on a Leicester jersey here, a decade and a half past, prior to joining their rivals Bath for his final two seasons of a storied career, the home side remained close to their very best, while their opponents were situated enduring a long drought without the title. Times have changed since. Bath arrived as champions, the first time they have called themselves that since the 1990s.
An Emotional Reception at Welford Road
Leicester, on a wave of emotion, served up an old-fashioned welcome, embracing the role of the unfancied team in their own stadium, the 18,000 Midlanders greatly inspired by Moody’s confession during the break that, no matter where he may live, Welford Road will always be his rugby home.
Looking back, Bath were always up against it. True to form, during a final, desperate attack on the Bath line, the Tigers managed to coax a crucial penalty out of the Bath defence.
A Dramatic Climax
The replacement fly-half, on for the impressive James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for the club, took a quick tap, before Thomas du Toit caught him high, for which offence he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick from a difficult angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
It felt like being transported back to Lewis Moody's prime. Without a doubt, the home team, who climb a little higher in the mid-table bun fight, can take great encouragement that their traditional, direct approach can still yield results, regardless of the quality of the opponent.
A Tale of Two Styles
The visitors were a different class 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 conceded by Bath kept Bath under constant pressure, their forwards comprehensively bested in the scrums and lineouts throughout the game.
Leicester’s three tries were remarkably similar, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath’s three were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath were the finishers, before and after Ollie Cracknell’s try for Tigers. Subsequently, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith powered over for tries just before and just after the break.
A Nail-Biting Conclusion
That earned Tigers the lead, an advantage they maintained 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, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. The fly-half, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, landed the kick 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. After earning the penalty that put Bath ahead in a situation he relishes, poor Du Toit conceded where he is not. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
