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Amidst one of rugby union's greatest rivalries, this match involving Leicester versus Bath proved to be as much about the emotion during half-time than the rugby on play.

Martin Johnson led a phalanx comprising Tigers former players to pay tribute to Lewis Moody, who has revealed his diagnosis with MND.

The last time Moody last pulled on the Tigers' shirt here, a decade and a half past, 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 found themselves enduring a lengthy period without the title. Times have changed since. Bath arrived as champions, marking the first occasion they have called themselves that since the 1990s.

An Emotional Welcome at Welford Road

Leicester, on a wave of emotion, offered them a classic, robust reception, relishing their status as the unfancied team on their own pitch, the large home crowd further emboldened by Moody's heartfelt admission at half-time that regardless of his residence, this famous ground remains his rugby home.

Looking back, the visiting side were always up against it. Sure enough, in a last-minute assault deep in Bath territory, the Tigers won one last penalty out of the Bath defence.

A Dramatic Decisive Moment

Billy Searle, who replaced the impressive James O’Connor, the seasoned Australian making his first start for Leicester, took a quick tap, and Thomas du Toit caught him high, for which offence he saw yellow. From the final play, Searle slotted the penalty kick from a difficult angle to snatch a dramatic victory.

We might as well have been back in the days of Moody’s pomp. Without a doubt, the home team, who moved up the table in a congested league, can take great encouragement that their traditional, direct approach remains effective, regardless of the quality of the opponent.

Contrasting Game Plans

Bath were a different class with ball in hand. Therefore, Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour in which they fell 17-7 behind, adapted to starve them of possession. A succession of penalties against Bath kept Bath on the back foot, their forwards comprehensively bested in the scrums and lineouts for most of the match.

Leicester’s three tries were remarkably similar, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath’s three were works of art. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath scored the tries, either side of Ollie Cracknell’s try for Tigers. Subsequently, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith powered over to score either side of half-time.

The Tense Finish

Those scores gave Leicester the lead, an advantage they maintained for the majority of the second period. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath secured sufficient possession to score their fourth. In fact, their breakthrough arrived via an infrequent penalty at the scrum, their South Africans by then on. Finn Russell, after missing two earlier kicks, successfully converted the penalty inside the final ten minutes.

This merely galvanized Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, initiated 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 conceded where he is not. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.