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Amidst one of rugby union's most storied contests, this match between Leicester versus the visitors was as much about the emotional tribute at the interval as any rugby during play.

The legendary Martin Johnson led a contingent of Leicester former players to pay tribute to the great Lewis Moody, who has announced his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.

When Moody wore the Tigers' shirt at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, prior to joining their rivals Bath for his final two seasons in a distinguished playing career, Leicester were more or less still at the peak of their powers, whereas their opponents found themselves enduring a lengthy period devoid of championship success. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals came into the match as title holders, the first time they've held that status in over two decades.

An Passionate Welcome on Home Turf

The Tigers, riding a powerful emotional surge, offered them an old-fashioned welcome, embracing the role of underdogs in their own stadium, the large home crowd further emboldened by Moody’s confession during the break that regardless of his residence, this famous ground will always be his rugby home.

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

A Dramatic Decisive Moment

The replacement fly-half, who replaced the impressive James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for the club, darted blind, 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 steal the win.

We might as well have been transported back to Lewis Moody's prime. Without a doubt, Leicester, who climb a little higher in a congested league, 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. So Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour which saw them trail 17-7, learned to deprive them of any. A succession of penalties against Bath put Bath on the back foot, their pack comprehensively bested in the scrums and lineouts throughout the game.

The Tigers' three touchdowns were remarkably similar, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath’s three were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath scored the tries, either side of Ollie Cracknell’s try for Leicester. Then, on the back of those penalties, Reffell and Smith powered over for tries just before and just after the break.

The Tense Finish

That earned Tigers 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 scoring opportunity arrived via an infrequent penalty in the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. Finn Russell, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, landed the kick with a little less than 10 minutes to play.

This merely galvanized Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, set up by the energetic Hassell-Collins down the left. After earning the penalty that earned Bath the lead where he is most comfortable, poor Du Toit conceded where he is not. There could be only one result.