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Against the backdrop of a classic English rugby's most storied rivalries, this match involving the Tigers versus Bath proved to be heavily influenced by the emotion during half-time as the rugby during play.

Martin Johnson headed a contingent comprising Leicester old boys in honour of the great Lewis Moody, after he revealed his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.

The last time Moody last pulled on the Tigers' shirt at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, prior to joining Bath for the last two years in a distinguished playing career, Leicester were more or less close to their very best, whereas Bath 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, marking the first occasion they've held that status since the 1990s.

A Truly Emotional Reception on Home Turf

The Tigers, on a wave of emotion, offered them an old-fashioned welcome, embracing the role of underdogs in their own stadium, the large home crowd greatly inspired by Moody’s confession at half-time that, no matter where he may live, Welford Road will always be the home of his rugby heart.

Looking back, the visiting side did not stand a chance. True to form, during a final, desperate attack deep in Bath territory, the Tigers won a crucial penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.

The Climax

The replacement fly-half, on for the excellent James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his debut start for the club, took a quick tap, and the Bath prop made a high tackle, an infringement for which he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle landed the penalty from a difficult angle to snatch a dramatic victory.

It felt like being back in the days of Moody’s pomp. Without a doubt, the home team, who moved up the table in the mid-table bun fight, will be heartened that their traditional, direct approach remains effective, regardless of the quality they face.

A Tale of Two Styles

The visitors were a different class when in possession. So Leicester, following a confusing opening period which saw them trail 17-7, learned to deprive them of any. A succession of penalties conceded by Bath kept Bath under constant pressure, their pack comprehensively bested in the scrums and lineouts throughout the game.

Leicester’s three tries 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. Subsequently, on the back of those penalties, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith forced their way over for tries just before and just after the break.

A Nail-Biting Finish

Those scores gave Leicester the lead, an advantage they maintained for most of the second half. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath won enough ball to score their fourth. In fact, their breakthrough came with a rare penalty at the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. Finn Russell, after missing two earlier kicks, successfully converted the penalty inside the final ten minutes.

That only inspired Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, set up by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins on the left wing. Having won the penalty that earned Bath the lead in a situation he relishes, the unfortunate prop conceded where he is not. There could be only one result.