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Against the backdrop of a classic rugby union's greatest rivalries, the match between the Tigers and Bath was as much about the emotion during the interval than the rugby during play.

Martin Johnson headed a contingent comprising Leicester former players in honour of Lewis Moody, who has announced that he has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease.

The last time Moody last pulled on a Leicester shirt here, 15 years ago, before moving to Bath for his final two seasons in a distinguished playing career, the home side were more or less still at the peak of their powers, while Bath found themselves enduring a long drought devoid of championship success. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. The Tigers’ great rivals arrived as champions, the first time they've held that status since the 1990s.

An Emotional Reception at Welford Road

Leicester, on a wave of emotion, offered them an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as the unfancied team on their own pitch, 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 the home of his rugby heart.

Looking back, the visiting side did not stand a chance. Sure enough, during a final, desperate attack on the Bath line, the Tigers won a crucial penalty out of the Bath defence.

A Dramatic Climax

Billy Searle, on for the excellent James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his debut start for Leicester, darted blind, and the Bath prop caught him high, an infringement for which he saw yellow. 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, Leicester, who climb a little higher in the mid-table bun fight, will be heartened that a familiar frontal assault remains effective, no matter the pedigree of the opponent.

Contrasting Game Plans

The visitors were a different class with ball in hand. Therefore, Leicester, following a confusing opening period in which they fell 17-7 behind, adapted to starve them of possession. A succession of penalties conceded by the away side kept Bath on the back foot, their pack comprehensively bested in the scrums and lineouts 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. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath scored the tries, either side of Cracknell's score for Leicester. Then, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith powered over for tries either side of half-time.

A Nail-Biting Conclusion

That earned Tigers 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 at the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. The fly-half, after missing two earlier kicks, landed the kick inside the final ten minutes.

That only inspired Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, initiated by the lively Ollie Hassell-Collins down the left. After earning the penalty that earned Bath the lead where he is most comfortable, poor Du Toit gave away a penalty in a vulnerable position. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.