🔗 Share this article Billy Searle's Final-Second Kick Delivers Poignant Tigers Victory Against Bath Amidst one of English rugby's most storied contests, the fixture involving the Tigers and Bath was as much about an emotional tribute at half-time than the rugby on play. The legendary Martin Johnson led a phalanx of Leicester former players in honour of Lewis Moody, after he announced that he has been diagnosed with MND. When Moody last pulled on the Tigers' shirt here, 15 years ago, prior to joining their rivals Bath for his final two seasons in a distinguished playing career, the home side were more or less close to their very best, while Bath found themselves enduring a long drought without the title. Times have changed since. The Tigers’ great rivals came into the match as title holders, the first time they have called themselves that in over two decades. An Passionate Welcome on Home Turf The Tigers, riding a powerful emotional surge, served up a classic, robust reception, relishing their status as the unfancied team in their own stadium, the large home crowd greatly inspired by Moody’s confession at half-time that, no matter where he may live, Welford Road will always be his rugby home. Looking back, the visiting side did not stand a chance. Sure enough, during a final, desperate attack deep in Bath territory, the Tigers managed to coax a crucial penalty out of the Bath defence. A Dramatic Climax The replacement fly-half, who replaced the impressive James O'Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for Leicester, took a quick tap, and Thomas du Toit made a high tackle, for which offence he saw yellow. With the last kick, Searle landed the penalty from a difficult angle to snatch a dramatic victory. It felt like being back in the days to Lewis Moody's prime. Without a doubt, the home team, who climb a little higher in a congested league, can take great encouragement that a familiar frontal assault remains effective, regardless of the quality they face. Contrasting Styles The visitors were a different class when in possession. Therefore, Leicester, after a bewildering first half-hour in which they fell 17-7 behind, learned to deprive them of any. A deluge of penalties against Bath kept Bath on the back foot, their pack thoroughly outplayed at the set piece throughout the game. Leicester’s three tries were carbon copies of each other, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath’s three were works of art. Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath were the finishers, either side of Cracknell's score for Tigers. Then, on the back of those penalties, Reffell and Smith powered over to score just before and just after the break. A Nail-Biting Finish 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 secured sufficient possession to score their fourth. Actually, their breakthrough arrived via an infrequent penalty in the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. The fly-half, after missing two earlier kicks, successfully converted the penalty inside the final ten minutes. This merely galvanized Leicester for one last, brutish assault, set up by the energetic Hassell-Collins down the left. After earning 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.