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Amidst one of rugby union's greatest contests, the match involving Leicester versus Bath was as much about the emotion during the interval as the rugby on the pitch.

The legendary Martin Johnson headed a phalanx of Leicester former players in honour of Lewis Moody, who has announced that he has been diagnosed with MND.

When Moody last pulled on the Tigers' shirt at Welford Road, 15 years ago, before moving to their rivals Bath for his final two seasons of a storied career, Leicester remained close to the peak of their powers, while Bath found themselves enduring a lengthy period without the title. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. Bath arrived as champions, the first time they have called themselves that in over two decades.

An Emotional Welcome at Welford Road

The Tigers, riding a powerful emotional surge, offered them an old-fashioned welcome, relishing their status as underdogs on their own pitch, the large home crowd greatly inspired by Moody's heartfelt admission during the break that, no matter where he may live, Welford Road remains his rugby home.

In retrospect, Bath were always up against it. True to form, in a last-minute assault on the Bath line, the Tigers managed to coax one last penalty from the tiring Bath defenders.

The Climax

The replacement fly-half, on for the excellent James O'Connor, the seasoned Australian making his debut start for Leicester, darted blind, and the Bath prop caught him high, for which offence he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle landed the penalty on an angle to steal the win.

We might as well have been back in the days to Lewis Moody's prime. Certainly, the home team, who climb a little higher in a congested league, can take great encouragement that a familiar frontal assault remains effective, no matter the pedigree of the opponent.

Contrasting Styles

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 against the away side put Bath under constant pressure, their pack thoroughly outplayed at the set piece for most of the match.

The Tigers' three touchdowns were carbon copies of each other, all scored from close range; Bath's three tries were studies in poetry. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath scored the tries, before and after Cracknell's score for Tigers. Then, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith forced their way over for tries just before and just after the break.

The Nail-Biting Finish

Those scores gave Leicester a narrow advantage, an advantage they maintained for the majority of the second period. It appeared inevitable before Bath won enough ball to grab a fourth try. In fact, their scoring opportunity arrived via an infrequent penalty at the scrum, their South Africans by then on. The fly-half, after missing two earlier kicks, successfully converted the penalty with a little less than 10 minutes to play.

This merely galvanized Leicester for one last, brutish assault, set up by the energetic Hassell-Collins down the left. Having won the penalty that put Bath ahead where he is most comfortable, the unfortunate prop conceded where he is not. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.