Amidst one of rugby union's most storied contests, this fixture between Leicester and Bath was heavily influenced by the emotion at the interval than the rugby on the pitch.
Martin Johnson headed a phalanx of Tigers former players to pay tribute to the great Lewis Moody, who has announced that he has been diagnosed with MND.
When Moody wore a Leicester jersey at Welford Road, 15 years ago, 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 lengthy period without the title. Times have changed since. Bath arrived as champions, the first time they've held that status since the 1990s.
An Passionate Welcome on Home Turf
Leicester, riding a powerful emotional surge, served up an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as underdogs on their own pitch, the large home crowd further emboldened by Moody’s confession during the break that, no matter where he may live, this famous ground will always be his rugby home.
Looking back, the visiting side were always up against it. True to form, in a last-minute assault on the Bath line, Leicester won a crucial penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
A Dramatic Climax
Billy Searle, who replaced the excellent James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for the club, darted blind, and Thomas du Toit caught him high, for which offence he received a yellow card. From the final play, Searle landed the penalty from a difficult angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
It felt like being transported back to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, Leicester, who moved up the table in the mid-table bun fight, will be heartened that their traditional, direct approach remains effective, no matter the pedigree they face.
A Tale of Two Styles
Bath were a different class with ball in hand. So Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour in which they fell 17-7 behind, adapted to starve them of possession. A succession of penalties conceded by Bath kept Bath under constant pressure, their pack comprehensively bested at the set piece for most of the match.
Leicester’s three tries were remarkably similar, all scored from close range; Bath’s three were studies in poetry. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath scored the tries, before and after Ollie Cracknell’s try for Leicester. Subsequently, on the back of those penalties, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith powered over for tries either side of half-time.
A Nail-Biting 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 grab a fourth try. Actually, their breakthrough arrived via an infrequent penalty at the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. Finn Russell, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, successfully converted the penalty with a little less than 10 minutes to play.
This merely galvanized Leicester for one last, brutish assault, initiated by the energetic Hassell-Collins down the left. After earning the penalty that earned Bath the lead where he is most comfortable, poor Du Toit conceded where he is not. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.