Amidst one of rugby union's greatest rivalries, this fixture between Leicester versus Bath proved to be as much about an emotion at the interval than the on-field action during play.
Martin Johnson led a contingent of Tigers former players to pay tribute to the great Lewis Moody, who has revealed that he has been diagnosed with MND.
When Moody last pulled on a Leicester shirt here, 15 years ago, before moving to Bath for his final two seasons of a storied career, Leicester were more or less close to the peak of their powers, whereas their opponents found themselves enduring a lengthy period devoid of championship success. Times have changed since. The Tigers’ great rivals came into the match as title holders, the first time they've held that status since the 1990s.
An Passionate Welcome on Home Turf
The Tigers, riding a powerful emotional surge, offered them an old-fashioned welcome, embracing the role of underdogs on their own pitch, the 18,000 Midlanders greatly inspired by Moody's heartfelt admission during the break that regardless of his residence, this famous ground will always be his rugby home.
Looking back, the visiting side were always up against it. True to form, during a final, desperate attack deep in Bath territory, the Tigers managed to coax a crucial penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
A Dramatic Decisive Moment
Billy Searle, who replaced the impressive James O’Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for Leicester, took a quick tap, and Thomas du Toit made a high tackle, an infringement for which he received a yellow card. With the last kick, Searle landed the penalty from a difficult angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
We might as well have been back in the days of Moody’s pomp. Without a doubt, the home team, who moved up the table 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 Game Plans
Bath were sublime when in possession. Therefore, Leicester, following a confusing opening period which saw them trail 17-7, learned to deprive them of any. A succession of penalties conceded by Bath put Bath under constant pressure, their pack thoroughly outplayed 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 tries were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath were the finishers, either side of Ollie Cracknell’s try for Tigers. Subsequently, capitalizing on the penalty count, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith forced their way over for tries just before and just after the break.
The Tense Finish
Those scores gave Leicester the lead, an advantage they maintained for the majority of the second period. It appeared inevitable before Bath secured sufficient possession to grab a fourth try. In fact, their breakthrough came with a rare penalty at the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. The fly-half, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, successfully converted the penalty inside the final ten minutes.
This merely galvanized Leicester for one last, brutish assault, initiated by the energetic Hassell-Collins down the left. Having won 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.
