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Amidst a classic rugby union's greatest contests, the match involving Leicester and Bath proved to be as much about an emotional tribute at the interval than any on-field action during play.

Martin Johnson headed a phalanx of Tigers old boys in honour of Lewis Moody, who has revealed that he has been diagnosed with MND.

The last time Moody wore the Tigers' shirt at Welford Road, 15 years ago, before moving to Bath for the last two years of a storied career, the home side remained close to the peak of their powers, while Bath were situated 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.

An Passionate Reception on Home Turf

Leicester, on a wave of emotion, offered them an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as underdogs on their own pitch, the large home crowd further emboldened by Moody’s confession during the break that, no matter where he may live, this famous ground will always be the home of his rugby heart.

Looking back, Bath were always up against it. 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, on for the excellent James O'Connor, the seasoned Australian making his first start for the club, took a quick tap, before Thomas du Toit made a high tackle, for which offence he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle landed the penalty from a difficult angle to snatch a dramatic victory.

We might as well have been back in the days of Moody’s pomp. Without a doubt, Leicester, who climb a little higher in a congested league, can take great encouragement that their traditional, direct approach can still yield results, regardless of the quality of the opponent.

A Tale of Two Game Plans

The visitors were a different class with ball in hand. Therefore, Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour which saw them trail 17-7, adapted to starve them of possession. A deluge of penalties conceded by Bath put Bath on the back foot, their forwards comprehensively bested at the set piece for most of the match.

Leicester’s three tries were remarkably similar, all scored from close range; Bath’s three were studies in poetry. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath were the finishers, before and after Cracknell's score for Leicester. Then, on the back of those penalties, Tommy Reffell and Nicky Smith forced their way over for tries either side of half-time.

The Tense Conclusion

Those scores gave Leicester a narrow advantage, an advantage they maintained for the majority of the second period. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath won enough ball to score their fourth. In fact, their scoring opportunity arrived via an infrequent penalty in the scrum, their South Africans by then on. The fly-half, after missing two earlier kicks, landed the kick with a little less than 10 minutes to play.

This merely galvanized Leicester for one last, brutish assault, initiated by the energetic Hassell-Collins on the left wing. After earning the penalty that put Bath ahead where he is most comfortable, poor Du Toit conceded where he is not. There could be only one result.