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Amidst one of rugby union's most storied contests, the match between the Tigers and the visitors proved to be as much about an emotion during the interval as the rugby on play.

Martin Johnson headed a contingent comprising Tigers old boys to pay tribute to the great Lewis Moody, after he revealed his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.

The last time Moody last pulled on a Leicester shirt here, a decade and a half past, prior to joining Bath for the last two years of a storied career, the home side were more or less still at their very best, whereas their opponents were situated in the middle of a lengthy period without the title. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. Bath came into the match as title holders, the first time they've held that status in over two decades.

A Truly Emotional Reception at Welford Road

The Tigers, on a wave of emotion, served up an old-fashioned welcome, embracing the role of the unfancied team in their own stadium, the 18,000 Midlanders further emboldened by Moody's heartfelt admission at half-time that regardless of his residence, Welford Road will always be the home of his rugby heart.

Looking back, Bath were always up against it. Sure enough, during a final, desperate attack on the Bath line, Leicester won one last penalty out of the Bath defence.

A Dramatic Climax

The replacement fly-half, on for the excellent James O’Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for Leicester, darted blind, and the Bath prop made a high tackle, an infringement for which he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick on an angle to snatch a dramatic victory.

It felt like being transported back to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, Leicester, 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 they face.

Contrasting Styles

Bath were a different class with ball in hand. So Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour in which they fell 17-7 behind, adapted to starve them of possession. A deluge of penalties conceded by the away side kept Bath under constant pressure, their forwards thoroughly outplayed in the scrums and lineouts for most of the match.

Leicester’s three tries were carbon copies of each other, all scored from close range; Bath's three tries were works of art. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath were the finishers, before and after Cracknell's score for Leicester. Subsequently, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith powered over for tries either side of half-time.

A Nail-Biting Conclusion

That earned Tigers the lead, which they held for the majority of the second period. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath secured sufficient possession to grab a fourth try. In fact, their scoring opportunity arrived via an infrequent penalty at the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. Finn Russell, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, successfully converted the penalty with a little less than 10 minutes to play.

That only inspired Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, set up by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins down the left. Having won the penalty that put Bath ahead where he is most comfortable, poor Du Toit gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. There could be only one result.