🔗 Share this article Searle's Final-Second Kick Secures Emotional Tigers Victory Over Bath Rugby Against the backdrop of one of English rugby's greatest rivalries, this fixture between the Tigers versus the visitors was as much about the emotional tribute during the interval than the on-field action during play. The legendary Martin Johnson led a phalanx of Leicester old boys to pay tribute to the great Lewis Moody, who has announced that he has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease. The last time Moody wore a Leicester jersey here, a decade and a half past, before moving to their rivals Bath for the last two years in a distinguished playing career, Leicester were more or less close to their very best, while Bath found themselves in the middle of a long drought devoid of championship success. The landscape has shifted dramatically since then. Bath arrived as champions, the first time they have called themselves that since the 1990s. An Passionate Reception on Home Turf The Tigers, riding a powerful emotional surge, offered them a classic, robust reception, relishing their status as the unfancied team on their own pitch, the 18,000 Midlanders greatly inspired by Moody’s confession during the break that regardless of his residence, this famous ground remains his rugby home. Looking back, the visiting side were always up against it. True to form, in a last-minute assault deep in Bath territory, the Tigers managed to coax a crucial penalty from the tiring Bath defenders. A Dramatic Decisive Moment The replacement fly-half, who replaced the impressive James O’Connor, the experienced Wallaby making his first start for Leicester, took a quick tap, before the Bath prop made a high tackle, an infringement for which he received a yellow card. With the last kick, Searle slotted the penalty kick from a difficult angle to snatch a dramatic victory. It felt like being transported back of Moody’s pomp. Without a doubt, the home team, who climb a little higher in the mid-table bun fight, can take great encouragement that a familiar frontal assault can still yield results, no matter the pedigree of the opponent. A Tale of Two Game Plans The visitors were sublime when in possession. So Leicester, following a confusing opening period in which they fell 17-7 behind, learned to deprive them of any. A succession of penalties conceded by the away side put Bath under constant pressure, their forwards thoroughly outplayed at the set piece for most of the match. The Tigers' three touchdowns were carbon copies of each other, neither scored from more than a yard; Bath’s three were studies in poetry. Frost, Underhill, and Redpath were the finishers, before and after Cracknell's score for Tigers. Subsequently, on the back of those penalties, Reffell and Smith powered over to score just before and just after the break. The Tense Finish That earned Tigers a narrow advantage, which they held for the majority of the second period. It seemed only a matter of time before Bath won enough ball to grab a fourth try. Actually, their breakthrough came with a rare penalty at the scrum, with their South African reinforcements now on the field. The fly-half, having missed two of his three earlier attempts, landed the kick 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 earned Bath the lead where he is most comfortable, poor Du Toit conceded where he is not. The outcome was then a foregone conclusion.