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Against the backdrop of a classic English rugby's most storied contests, the fixture involving Leicester and Bath was heavily influenced by an emotion at the interval as the rugby on the pitch.

The legendary Martin Johnson led a contingent comprising Tigers former players in honour of the great Lewis Moody, after he announced that he has been diagnosed with MND.

When Moody wore the Tigers' jersey here, 15 years ago, prior to joining their rivals Bath for the last two years of a storied career, Leicester remained close to the peak of their powers, whereas Bath were situated in the middle of a long drought without the title. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. Bath arrived as champions, the first time they've held that status since the 1990s.

An Passionate Welcome on Home Turf

The Tigers, riding a powerful emotional surge, offered them an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as the unfancied team on their own pitch, the large home crowd greatly inspired by Moody’s confession at half-time that, no matter where he may live, this famous ground remains the home of his rugby heart.

Looking back, Bath did not stand a chance. True to form, in a last-minute assault deep in Bath territory, the Tigers managed to coax one last penalty out of the Bath defence.

A Dramatic Decisive Moment

Billy Searle, on for the impressive James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his debut start for the club, took a quick tap, before Thomas du Toit caught him high, an infringement for which he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick from a difficult angle to snatch a dramatic victory.

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

A Tale of Two Styles

The visitors were a different class when in possession. Therefore, Leicester, following a confusing opening period in which they fell 17-7 behind, adapted to starve them of possession. A succession of penalties against Bath kept Bath under constant pressure, their pack thoroughly outplayed in the scrums and lineouts for most of the match.

Leicester’s three tries were carbon copies of each other, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath’s three were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath were the finishers, before and after Ollie Cracknell’s try for Leicester. Subsequently, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith powered over for tries 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 appeared inevitable before Bath secured sufficient possession to score their fourth. 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, landed the kick with a little less than 10 minutes to play.

That only inspired Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, initiated by the energetic Hassell-Collins on the left wing. Having won the penalty that earned Bath the lead where he is most comfortable, the unfortunate prop gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. There could be only one result.