Billy Searle's Final-Second Kick Secures Poignant Leicester Win Over Bath Rugby

Amidst one of rugby union's most storied contests, this fixture involving Leicester versus Bath was heavily influenced by the emotional tribute during half-time as the rugby on play.

Martin Johnson headed a phalanx comprising Tigers old boys in honour of Lewis Moody, after he announced his diagnosis with motor neurone disease.

When Moody wore a Leicester shirt at Welford Road, a decade and a half past, prior to joining their rivals Bath for the last two years in a distinguished playing career, Leicester remained still at the peak of their powers, whereas their opponents found themselves enduring a lengthy period devoid of championship success. Times have changed since. Bath arrived as champions, the first time they have called themselves that in over two decades.

An Passionate Reception at Welford Road

The Tigers, riding a powerful emotional surge, served up a classic, robust reception, relishing their status as the unfancied team on their own pitch, the large home crowd further emboldened by Moody’s confession at half-time that regardless of his residence, Welford Road remains his rugby home.

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

A Dramatic Climax

Billy Searle, on for the impressive James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his debut start for the club, took a quick tap, before Thomas du Toit made a high tackle, an infringement for which he received a yellow card. From the final play, Searle landed the penalty from a difficult angle to snatch a dramatic victory.

We might as well have been transported back of Moody’s pomp. Without a doubt, the home team, who moved up the table in the mid-table bun fight, can take great encouragement that a familiar frontal assault remains effective, no matter the pedigree of the opponent.

A Tale of Two Styles

Bath were sublime when in possession. Therefore, Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour which saw them trail 17-7, adapted to starve them of possession. A succession of penalties against the away side put Bath on the back foot, their forwards comprehensively bested in the scrums and lineouts throughout the game.

The Tigers' three touchdowns 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, before and after Ollie Cracknell’s try for Leicester. Subsequently, capitalizing on the penalty count, Reffell and Smith forced their way over to score just before and just after the break.

A Nail-Biting Finish

That earned Tigers the lead, an advantage they maintained for the majority of the second period. It appeared inevitable before Bath won enough ball to grab a fourth try. Actually, their scoring opportunity arrived via an infrequent penalty at the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. The fly-half, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, successfully converted the penalty inside the final ten minutes.

That only inspired Leicester to launch one final, powerful assault, set up by the energetic Hassell-Collins on the left wing. Having won the penalty that put Bath ahead in a situation he relishes, poor Du Toit conceded where he is not. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.