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Amidst one of English rugby's most storied contests, the fixture involving the Tigers and the visitors was heavily influenced by the emotional tribute at the interval than any rugby during the pitch.

Martin Johnson led a phalanx of Tigers old boys in honour of the great Lewis Moody, who has revealed that he has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease.

When Moody wore the Tigers' jersey at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, prior to joining their rivals Bath for his final two seasons of a storied career, Leicester remained close to the peak of their powers, whereas Bath found themselves enduring a lengthy period without the title. Times have changed since. Bath came into the match as title holders, marking the first occasion they've held that status since the 1990s.

An Emotional Welcome on Home Turf

Leicester, riding a powerful emotional surge, offered them a classic, robust reception, relishing their status as underdogs in their own stadium, the large home crowd further emboldened by Moody’s confession at half-time that regardless of his residence, Welford Road will always be his rugby home.

Looking back, Bath were always up against it. True to form, in a last-minute assault deep in Bath territory, Leicester won a crucial penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.

A Dramatic Climax

Billy Searle, on for the impressive 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 saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick on an angle to snatch a dramatic victory.

We might as well have been transported back of Moody’s pomp. Without a doubt, the home team, who climb a little higher in a congested league, can take great encouragement that their traditional, direct approach remains effective, regardless of the quality they face.

Contrasting Game Plans

Bath were a different class 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 deluge of penalties conceded by the away side put Bath under constant pressure, their pack comprehensively bested in the scrums and lineouts for most of the match.

The Tigers' three touchdowns were remarkably similar, all scored from close range; Bath’s three were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath scored the tries, before and after Ollie Cracknell’s try for Tigers. Then, capitalizing on the penalty count, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith powered over to score just before and just after the break.

The Tense Conclusion

Those scores gave Leicester the lead, an advantage they maintained for the majority of the second period. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath secured sufficient possession to grab a fourth try. Actually, their breakthrough came with a rare penalty in the scrum, their South Africans by then on. Finn Russell, after missing two earlier kicks, landed the kick inside the final ten minutes.

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 in a situation he relishes, poor Du Toit gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.