Against the backdrop of one of English rugby's most storied rivalries, this match between the Tigers and the visitors proved to be as much about an emotion during half-time than any on-field action on play.
Martin Johnson headed a phalanx comprising Leicester former players in honour of Lewis Moody, who has announced his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.
When Moody wore the Tigers' jersey at Welford Road, 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 the peak of their powers, whereas their opponents were situated in the middle of a long drought without the title. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, the first time they've held that status since the 1990s.
An Emotional Reception on Home Turf
The Tigers, riding a powerful emotional surge, offered them a classic, robust reception, relishing their status as the unfancied team in their own stadium, the large home crowd greatly inspired by Moody's heartfelt admission during the break that regardless of his residence, Welford Road remains his rugby home.
In retrospect, the visiting side did not stand a chance. Sure enough, during a final, desperate attack on the Bath line, Leicester won one last penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
The Climax
The replacement fly-half, who replaced the impressive James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his debut start for Leicester, darted blind, before the Bath prop caught him high, for which offence he received a yellow card. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick on an angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
It felt like being transported back to Lewis Moody's prime. Without a doubt, the home team, who climb a little higher in a congested league, will be heartened that a familiar frontal assault remains effective, no matter the pedigree of the opponent.
Contrasting Game Plans
The visitors were sublime when in possession. So Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour which saw them trail 17-7, adapted to starve them of possession. A deluge of penalties against the away side kept Bath under constant pressure, their pack thoroughly outplayed in the scrums and lineouts throughout the game.
The Tigers' three touchdowns were carbon copies of each other, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath’s three were works of art. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath were the finishers, either side of Cracknell's score for Tigers. Then, on the back of those penalties, Reffell and Smith forced their way over to score just before and just after the break.
The Nail-Biting Finish
That earned Tigers the lead, an advantage they maintained for most of the second half. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath secured sufficient possession to score their fourth. In fact, their scoring opportunity arrived via an infrequent penalty in the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. The fly-half, after missing two earlier kicks, successfully converted the penalty inside the final ten minutes.
That only inspired Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, set up by the energetic Hassell-Collins on the left wing. Having won the penalty that earned Bath the lead in a situation he relishes, poor Du Toit gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. There could be only one result.
