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Against the backdrop of one of rugby union's most storied contests, the fixture between Leicester and Bath was heavily influenced by the emotional tribute at half-time as the rugby on play.

The legendary Martin Johnson led a phalanx of Tigers old boys in honour of Lewis Moody, who has announced his diagnosis with MND.

When 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 in a distinguished playing career, the home side remained still at the peak of their powers, while their opponents were situated in the middle of a long drought without the title. Times have changed since. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, marking the first occasion they have called themselves that since the 1990s.

A Truly Passionate Reception at Welford Road

Leicester, on a wave of emotion, served up a classic, robust reception, relishing their status as the unfancied team in their own stadium, the 18,000 Midlanders further emboldened by Moody’s confession at half-time that regardless of his residence, Welford Road will always be his rugby home.

Looking back, the visiting side 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 from the tiring Bath defenders.

The Decisive Moment

The replacement fly-half, on for the impressive James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for Leicester, took a quick tap, and Thomas du Toit made a high tackle, for which offence he received a yellow card. From the final play, Searle slotted the penalty kick on an 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 remains effective, regardless of the quality they face.

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 deluge of penalties conceded by the away side kept Bath on the back foot, their pack thoroughly outplayed in the scrums and lineouts throughout the game.

The Tigers' three touchdowns were carbon copies of each other, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath’s three were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath scored the tries, before and after Ollie Cracknell’s try for Leicester. Subsequently, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith forced their way over for tries just before and just after the break.

The Nail-Biting Conclusion

That earned Tigers a narrow advantage, which they held for most of the second half. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath won enough ball to score their fourth. Actually, their breakthrough 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 with a little less than 10 minutes to play.

That only inspired Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, set up by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins down the left. After earning 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.