Amidst a classic English rugby's greatest contests, this match involving the Tigers versus the visitors proved to be as much about the emotion at the interval as the on-field action on the pitch.
The legendary Martin Johnson led a contingent comprising Tigers old boys in honour of the great Lewis Moody, who has revealed that he has been diagnosed with MND.
When Moody wore the Tigers' shirt here, a decade and a half past, before moving to 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 found themselves in the middle of a long drought without the title. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. Bath came into the match as title holders, the first time they've held that status since the 1990s.
A Truly Emotional Reception on Home Turf
The Tigers, on a wave of emotion, offered them a classic, robust reception, embracing the role of the unfancied team in their own stadium, the 18,000 Midlanders further emboldened by Moody's heartfelt admission at half-time that regardless of his residence, this famous ground will always be his rugby home.
Looking back, Bath did not stand a chance. True to form, during a final, desperate attack deep in Bath territory, Leicester managed to coax one last penalty out of the Bath defence.
The Decisive Moment
Billy Searle, who replaced the excellent James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for the club, took a quick tap, before the Bath prop caught him high, for which offence he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle landed the penalty on an angle to steal the win.
It felt like being back in the days to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, Leicester, who moved up the table in the mid-table bun fight, will be heartened that a familiar frontal assault remains effective, regardless of the quality of the opponent.
Contrasting Game Plans
The visitors were a different class with ball in hand. So Leicester, following a confusing opening period in which they fell 17-7 behind, learned to deprive them of any. A succession of penalties conceded by Bath put Bath on the back foot, their forwards comprehensively bested in the scrums and lineouts for most of the match.
Leicester’s three tries were remarkably similar, all scored from close range; Bath's three tries were works of art. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath scored the tries, either side of Cracknell's score for Leicester. Subsequently, on the back of those penalties, Reffell and Smith powered over to score either side of half-time.
The Nail-Biting Conclusion
Those scores gave Leicester a narrow advantage, an advantage they maintained for most of the second half. It appeared inevitable before Bath won enough ball to grab a fourth try. In fact, their scoring opportunity arrived via an infrequent penalty at the scrum, their South Africans by then on. Finn Russell, after missing two earlier kicks, successfully converted the penalty inside the final ten minutes.
This merely galvanized Leicester for one last, brutish assault, initiated by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins down the left. 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.
