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Against the backdrop of a classic English rugby's most storied rivalries, this match involving the Tigers and the visitors proved to be as much about the emotional tribute at the interval as the rugby on the pitch.

The legendary Martin Johnson headed a phalanx of Leicester old boys in honour of the great Lewis Moody, after he announced his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.

When Moody last pulled on a Leicester shirt at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, before moving to Bath for the last two years in a distinguished playing career, Leicester remained still at the peak of their powers, whereas Bath were situated in the middle of a lengthy period without the title. Times have changed since. Bath arrived as champions, the first time they have called themselves that since the 1990s.

An Emotional Welcome on Home Turf

Leicester, on a wave of emotion, offered them an old-fashioned welcome, embracing the role of the unfancied team in their own stadium, the large home crowd further emboldened by Moody’s confession during the break that, no matter where he may live, Welford Road remains the home of his rugby heart.

In retrospect, Bath did not stand a chance. True to form, in a last-minute assault on the Bath line, the Tigers won one last penalty out of the Bath defence.

The Climax

The replacement fly-half, who replaced the excellent James O’Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his debut start for Leicester, took a quick tap, and 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.

It felt like being transported back of Moody’s pomp. Certainly, Leicester, who climb a little higher in the mid-table bun fight, can take great encouragement that their traditional, direct approach can still yield results, regardless of the quality they face.

Contrasting Game Plans

The visitors were a different class with ball in hand. So Leicester, following a confusing opening period which saw them trail 17-7, adapted to starve them of possession. A deluge of penalties conceded by Bath kept Bath under constant pressure, their forwards comprehensively bested in the scrums and lineouts for most of the match.

Leicester’s three tries were carbon copies of each other, all scored from close range; Bath's three tries were works of art. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath were the finishers, before and after Cracknell's score for Tigers. Then, on the back of those penalties, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith forced their way over for tries either side of half-time.

A Nail-Biting Conclusion

That earned Tigers the lead, 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 in the scrum, their South Africans by then on. The fly-half, after missing two earlier kicks, successfully converted the penalty with a little less than 10 minutes to play.

That only inspired Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, set up by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins on the left wing. After earning the penalty that put Bath ahead in a situation he relishes, poor Du Toit gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.