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Against the backdrop of one of English rugby's most storied rivalries, this fixture involving the Tigers and Bath was as much about the emotion during the interval than the on-field action on the pitch.

Martin Johnson headed a phalanx comprising Tigers former players to pay tribute to the great Lewis Moody, who has announced his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.

The last time Moody last pulled on a Leicester jersey here, a decade and a half past, before moving to their rivals Bath for the last two years in a distinguished playing career, Leicester remained still at their very best, whereas their opponents found themselves enduring a lengthy period without the title. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. Bath came into the match as title holders, marking the first occasion they have called themselves that in over two decades.

An Passionate Reception on Home Turf

The Tigers, riding a powerful emotional surge, served up an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as underdogs in their own stadium, the 18,000 Midlanders greatly inspired by Moody’s confession during the break that regardless of his residence, Welford Road remains the home of his rugby heart.

Looking back, the visiting side were always up against it. True to form, during a final, desperate attack on the Bath line, Leicester managed to coax a crucial penalty out of the Bath defence.

The Climax

The replacement fly-half, on for the excellent James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his debut start for Leicester, darted blind, before Thomas du Toit caught him high, an infringement for which he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle landed the penalty from a difficult angle to snatch a dramatic victory.

We might as well have been transported back of Moody’s pomp. Certainly, Leicester, who moved up the table in a congested league, can take great encouragement that their traditional, direct approach can still yield results, regardless of the quality of the opponent.

A Tale of Two Styles

Bath were a different class when in possession. So Leicester, following a confusing opening period which saw them trail 17-7, learned to deprive them of any. A succession 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, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath's three tries were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath were the finishers, either side of Cracknell's score for Tigers. Then, on the back of those penalties, Reffell and Smith forced their way over for tries just before and just after the break.

The Nail-Biting 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 secured sufficient possession to grab a fourth try. Actually, their breakthrough arrived via an infrequent penalty at the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. Finn Russell, after missing two earlier kicks, successfully converted the penalty with a little less than 10 minutes to play.

This merely galvanized Leicester for one last, brutish assault, initiated by the energetic Hassell-Collins on the left wing. After earning the penalty that put Bath ahead where he is most comfortable, poor Du Toit gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.