Against the backdrop of a classic rugby union's most storied contests, this match involving Leicester versus Bath was as much about the emotion at the interval than any rugby during play.
The legendary Martin Johnson led a contingent comprising Leicester former players in honour of the great Lewis Moody, after he revealed that he has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease.
The last time Moody last pulled on a Leicester shirt at Welford Road, 15 years ago, before moving to their rivals Bath for his final two seasons of a storied career, the home side remained close to the peak of their powers, while their opponents found themselves in the middle of a lengthy period devoid of championship success. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, marking the first occasion they've held that status since the 1990s.
An Passionate Welcome on Home Turf
Leicester, riding a powerful emotional surge, offered them an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as underdogs in their own stadium, the large home crowd greatly inspired by Moody’s confession during the break that regardless of his residence, this famous ground remains the home of his rugby heart.
In retrospect, the visiting side were always up against it. Sure enough, in a last-minute assault deep in Bath territory, Leicester managed to coax one last penalty out of the Bath defence.
The Climax
Billy Searle, on for the impressive James O’Connor, the seasoned Australian making his debut start for Leicester, took a quick tap, before Thomas du Toit caught him high, an infringement for which he received a yellow card. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick on an angle to steal the win.
We might as well have been back in the days to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, Leicester, who moved up the table in a congested league, can take great encouragement that a familiar frontal assault can still yield results, no matter the pedigree they face.
A Tale of Two Game Plans
The visitors 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 deluge of penalties conceded by Bath kept Bath under constant pressure, their pack thoroughly outplayed at the set piece throughout the game.
Leicester’s three tries were carbon copies of each other, all scored from close range; Bath’s three were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath were the finishers, before and after Ollie Cracknell’s try for Leicester. Subsequently, on the back of those penalties, Reffell and Smith powered over to score either side of half-time.
The Tense Finish
Those scores gave Leicester a narrow advantage, 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 at the scrum, their South Africans by then on. Finn Russell, after missing two earlier kicks, successfully converted the penalty with a little less than 10 minutes to play.
This merely galvanized Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, set up by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins on the left wing. Having won the penalty that put Bath ahead in a situation he relishes, the unfortunate prop gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.
