Against the backdrop of one of English rugby's greatest rivalries, the fixture between Leicester and the visitors proved to be as much about the emotional tribute during half-time than any on-field action during play.
The legendary Martin Johnson led a phalanx of Leicester former players to pay tribute to Lewis Moody, who has revealed his diagnosis with MND.
When Moody last pulled on the Tigers' jersey here, a decade and a half past, before moving to Bath for his final two seasons of a storied career, Leicester were more or less still at their very best, whereas their opponents were situated in the middle of a long drought without the title. 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.
A Truly Emotional Welcome on Home Turf
The Tigers, on a wave of emotion, served up an old-fashioned welcome, embracing the role of underdogs in their own stadium, the large home crowd further emboldened by Moody's heartfelt admission at half-time that, no matter where he may live, this famous ground will always be the home of his rugby heart.
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 Decisive Moment
The replacement fly-half, on for the excellent James O'Connor, the seasoned Australian making his first start for the club, darted blind, and the Bath prop made a high tackle, an infringement for which 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 of Moody’s pomp. Without a doubt, Leicester, who climb a little higher in the mid-table bun fight, will be heartened that a familiar frontal assault can still yield results, regardless of the quality they face.
A Tale of Two Game Plans
Bath were sublime with ball in hand. Therefore, Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour in which they fell 17-7 behind, learned to deprive them of any. A succession of penalties conceded by the away side kept Bath under constant pressure, their pack comprehensively bested in the scrums and lineouts throughout the game.
The Tigers' three touchdowns were remarkably similar, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath's three tries were works of art. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath scored the tries, before and after Cracknell's score for Tigers. Subsequently, on the back of those penalties, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith forced their way over for tries just before and just after the break.
The Nail-Biting Conclusion
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. Actually, 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 inside the final ten minutes.
This merely galvanized Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, initiated by the energetic Hassell-Collins on the left wing. Having won the penalty that earned Bath the lead where he is most comfortable, poor Du Toit conceded where he is not. There could be only one result.
