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Amidst a classic rugby union's greatest contests, this fixture between Leicester versus the visitors proved to be heavily influenced by the emotional tribute during half-time than any on-field action on play.

Martin Johnson led a phalanx of Tigers old boys in honour of the great Lewis Moody, after he announced his diagnosis with MND.

When Moody wore a Leicester jersey here, a decade and a half past, prior to joining Bath for his final two seasons of a storied career, the home side remained close to their very best, while Bath were situated in the middle of a long drought devoid of championship success. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, marking the first occasion they have called themselves that since the 1990s.

An Passionate Welcome on Home Turf

Leicester, riding a powerful emotional surge, offered them a classic, robust reception, embracing the role of the unfancied team in their own stadium, the large home crowd greatly inspired by Moody’s confession at half-time that regardless of his residence, this famous ground remains his rugby home.

In retrospect, the visiting side did not stand a chance. Sure enough, in a last-minute assault deep in Bath territory, Leicester won a crucial penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.

The Climax

Billy Searle, who replaced the impressive James O'Connor, the seasoned Australian making his first start for the club, darted blind, before the Bath prop made a high tackle, an infringement for which he received a yellow card. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick from a difficult angle to snatch a dramatic victory.

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 a familiar frontal assault can still yield results, no matter the pedigree of the opponent.

Contrasting Styles

The visitors were sublime when in possession. Therefore, Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour in which they fell 17-7 behind, learned to deprive them of any. A deluge of penalties against the away side kept Bath on the back foot, their pack thoroughly outplayed in the scrums and lineouts throughout the game.

Leicester’s three tries were remarkably similar, all scored from close range; Bath's three tries were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath were the finishers, either side of Cracknell's score for Leicester. Then, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith powered over to score either side of half-time.

A Nail-Biting Conclusion

That earned Tigers the lead, which they held 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 at the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. Finn Russell, 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. 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.