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Amidst one of English rugby's most storied rivalries, the match involving the Tigers versus the visitors proved to be as much about an emotional tribute during the interval as any on-field action on the pitch.

The legendary Martin Johnson led a contingent of Tigers old boys in honour of Lewis Moody, who has announced his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.

The last time Moody wore a Leicester shirt here, a decade and a half past, prior to joining Bath for his final two seasons of a storied career, the home side remained close to the peak of their powers, while Bath found themselves enduring a lengthy period devoid of championship success. Times have changed since. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, the first time they've held that status since the 1990s.

A Truly Passionate Welcome on Home Turf

Leicester, riding a powerful emotional surge, served up an old-fashioned welcome, embracing the role of the unfancied team on their own pitch, the large home crowd greatly inspired by Moody's heartfelt admission at half-time that, no matter where he may live, Welford Road remains his rugby home.

In retrospect, the visiting side were always up against it. True to form, in a last-minute assault deep in Bath territory, Leicester won one last penalty out of the Bath defence.

The Decisive Moment

The replacement fly-half, who replaced the excellent James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for Leicester, darted blind, and the Bath prop caught him high, for which offence he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle landed the penalty from a difficult angle to snatch a dramatic victory.

It felt like being transported back to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, the home team, who climb a little higher in a congested league, will be heartened that their traditional, direct approach can still yield results, no matter the pedigree of the opponent.

A Tale of Two Game Plans

The visitors were sublime when in possession. So Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour which saw them trail 17-7, adapted to starve them of possession. A succession of penalties conceded by the away side kept Bath under constant pressure, their forwards comprehensively bested at the set piece throughout the game.

The Tigers' three touchdowns were carbon copies of each other, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath's three tries were studies in poetry. 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 forced their way over for tries just before and just after the break.

A Tense Conclusion

That earned Tigers a narrow advantage, which they held for the majority of the second period. It appeared inevitable before Bath won enough ball to score their fourth. In fact, their scoring opportunity arrived via an infrequent penalty at the scrum, their South Africans by then on. Finn Russell, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, successfully converted the penalty with a little less than 10 minutes to play.

This merely galvanized Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, initiated by the energetic Hassell-Collins down the left. After earning the penalty that put Bath ahead in a situation he relishes, the unfortunate prop conceded where he is not. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.