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Amidst a classic English rugby's greatest rivalries, this match involving Leicester versus the visitors was heavily influenced by the emotion during half-time than the on-field action on the pitch.

The legendary Martin Johnson led a phalanx comprising Tigers old boys to pay tribute to Lewis Moody, who has announced his diagnosis with MND.

The last time Moody wore the Tigers' shirt at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, prior to joining their rivals Bath for his final two seasons of a storied career, Leicester were more or less close to the peak of their powers, while their opponents found themselves enduring a lengthy period without the title. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. Bath arrived as champions, the first time they've held that status in over two decades.

A Truly Emotional Welcome at Welford Road

The Tigers, riding a powerful emotional surge, 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, this famous ground will always be his rugby home.

Looking back, the visiting side were always up against it. True to form, during a final, desperate attack on the Bath line, the Tigers won one last penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.

A Dramatic Climax

Billy Searle, who replaced the impressive James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for the club, took a quick tap, and the Bath prop made a high tackle, an infringement for which he saw yellow. From the final play, Searle slotted the penalty kick on an angle to snatch a dramatic victory.

It felt like being back in the days of Moody’s pomp. Certainly, Leicester, who climb a little higher in the mid-table bun fight, will be heartened that a familiar frontal assault remains effective, regardless of the quality they face.

Contrasting Styles

Bath were a different class when in possession. So Leicester, following a confusing opening period in which they fell 17-7 behind, adapted to starve them of possession. A deluge of penalties against the away side put Bath under constant pressure, their pack comprehensively bested at the set piece throughout the game.

The Tigers' three touchdowns were remarkably similar, all scored from close range; Bath’s three were works of art. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath scored the tries, before and after Ollie Cracknell’s try for Leicester. Subsequently, on the back of those penalties, Reffell and Smith forced their way over for tries either side of half-time.

The Tense Finish

Those scores gave Leicester the lead, an advantage they maintained for most of the second half. It appeared inevitable before Bath won enough ball to score their fourth. In fact, their breakthrough came with a rare penalty at the scrum, their South Africans by then on. Finn Russell, after missing two earlier kicks, 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 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.