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Amidst a classic rugby union's most storied contests, this fixture involving Leicester and Bath was heavily influenced by an emotion during the interval than the rugby during the pitch.

Martin Johnson led a phalanx of Leicester former players to pay tribute to Lewis Moody, after he revealed his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.

When Moody wore a Leicester jersey at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, before moving to their rivals Bath for his final two seasons in a distinguished playing career, the home side were more or less close to their very best, whereas Bath found themselves in the middle of a long drought without the title. Times have changed since. Bath came into the match as title holders, marking the first occasion they have called themselves that in over two decades.

An Emotional Welcome on Home Turf

Leicester, riding a powerful emotional surge, 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 regardless of his residence, Welford Road will always be his rugby home.

In retrospect, the visiting side were always up against it. True to form, in a last-minute assault deep in Bath territory, Leicester won a crucial penalty out of the Bath defence.

A Dramatic Climax

The replacement fly-half, who replaced the excellent James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his debut start for the club, darted blind, and 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 steal the win.

It felt like being back in the days of Moody’s pomp. Certainly, Leicester, who moved up the table in the mid-table bun fight, will be heartened that their traditional, direct approach remains effective, regardless of the quality they face.

A Tale of Two Game Plans

The visitors were sublime with ball in hand. Therefore, Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour which saw them trail 17-7, adapted to starve them of possession. A deluge of penalties against Bath kept Bath on the back foot, their forwards 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 works of art. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath scored the tries, either side of Cracknell's score for Tigers. Then, on the back of those penalties, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith forced their way over to score either side of half-time.

The Tense Conclusion

That earned Tigers a narrow advantage, which they held for the majority of the second period. It appeared inevitable before Bath won enough ball to grab a fourth try. In fact, their scoring opportunity arrived via an infrequent penalty at 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 for one last, brutish assault, set up by the energetic Hassell-Collins down the left. Having won the penalty that put Bath ahead in a situation he relishes, poor Du Toit conceded where he is not. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.