Amidst one of English rugby's most storied contests, this fixture involving Leicester and Bath was as much about an emotion during the interval than any on-field action on the pitch.
The legendary Martin Johnson led a contingent of Leicester old boys to pay tribute to Lewis Moody, who has announced his diagnosis with MND.
When Moody last pulled on a Leicester shirt at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, before moving to their rivals Bath for the last two years in a distinguished playing career, the home side remained close to their very best, whereas their opponents found themselves enduring a lengthy period without the title. Times have changed since. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, the first time they have called themselves that since the 1990s.
A Truly Passionate Welcome at Welford Road
Leicester, riding a powerful emotional surge, offered them an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as the unfancied team on their own pitch, the large home crowd further emboldened by Moody's heartfelt admission during the break that regardless of his residence, Welford Road remains his rugby home.
In retrospect, Bath were always up against it. Sure enough, during a final, desperate attack deep in Bath territory, the Tigers won a crucial penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.
A Dramatic Climax
Billy Searle, on for the excellent James O'Connor, the seasoned Australian making his debut start for the club, took a quick tap, before the Bath prop made a high tackle, for which offence he received a yellow card. With the last kick, Searle landed the penalty from a difficult angle to snatch a dramatic victory.
It felt like being back in the days to Lewis Moody's prime. Without a doubt, the home team, who climb a little higher in a congested league, will be heartened that their traditional, direct approach can still yield results, regardless of the quality they face.
Contrasting Styles
The visitors were sublime with ball in hand. Therefore, Leicester, following a confusing opening period in which they fell 17-7 behind, learned to deprive them of any. A succession of penalties against Bath kept Bath under constant pressure, their forwards comprehensively bested at the set piece for most of the match.
Leicester’s three tries 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, before and after Ollie Cracknell’s try for Tigers. Subsequently, capitalizing on the penalty count, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith forced their way over to score just before and just after the break.
The Tense Conclusion
Those scores gave Leicester a narrow advantage, an advantage they maintained for most of the second half. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath won enough ball to grab a fourth try. 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, 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, set up by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins on the left wing. Having won the penalty that earned Bath the lead in a situation he relishes, poor Du Toit conceded where he is not. There could be only one result.
