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Against the backdrop of a classic rugby union's greatest contests, this fixture between Leicester versus Bath proved to be as much about an emotion during half-time than any rugby during play.

Martin Johnson led a phalanx of Leicester old boys in honour of the great Lewis Moody, who has revealed his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.

When Moody last pulled on a Leicester jersey at Welford Road, 15 years ago, prior to joining their rivals Bath for the last two years in a distinguished playing career, the home side remained close to their very best, while Bath found themselves in the middle of a long drought without the title. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. Bath came into the match as title holders, marking the first occasion they've held that status in over two decades.

A Truly Passionate Welcome on Home Turf

Leicester, on a wave of emotion, offered them an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as the unfancied team in their own stadium, the large home crowd further emboldened by Moody's heartfelt admission during the break that, no matter where he may live, Welford Road will always be the home of his rugby heart.

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

A Dramatic Decisive Moment

Billy Searle, who replaced the excellent James O’Connor, the seasoned Australian making his debut start for Leicester, took a quick tap, before the Bath prop caught him high, for which offence he received a yellow card. From the final play, Searle landed the penalty on an angle to steal the win.

It felt like being transported back 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 a familiar frontal assault can still yield results, no matter the pedigree of the opponent.

Contrasting Styles

Bath were sublime with ball in hand. Therefore, Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour which saw them trail 17-7, learned to deprive them of any. A deluge of penalties against the away side put Bath on the back foot, their forwards comprehensively bested at the set piece throughout the game.

Leicester’s three tries were carbon copies of each other, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath's three tries were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath were the finishers, either side of Cracknell's score for Leicester. Then, on the back of those penalties, 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 most of the second half. It appeared inevitable before Bath won enough ball to score their fourth. In fact, their scoring opportunity came with a rare penalty at the scrum, their South Africans by then on. The fly-half, 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, initiated 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. There could be only one result.