It felt like the clocks had been turned back at Welford Road. Lewis Moody lumbered across the pitch with Martin Johnson and Geordan Murphy, as that familiar Tigers chant swirled around the stands.
Leicester knuckled down at the set piece and the club’s eternal chairman, Peter Tom, banged his 84-year-old fists on the benches with an excitement that never seems to age. It was, right up until Billy Searle’s final kick of the match, a performance which knitted together the generations.
There were 17,000 supporters who choked up with Moody as he addressed the crowd at half-time. Standing on the very turf where he grew up, he talked about his diagnosis with Motor Neurone Disease. It sent an emotional supercharge around the stadium that seemed to power Leicester to victory over their old rivals from Bath.
This was a back-to-basics performance – scrums and aerial dominance – as Geoff Parling urged his players to pour their hearts into the jersey. And it was a day that showcased the best of the Tigers community.
‘It’s been 15 years since I got to set foot on this pitch,’ said Moody, accompanied by his sons, Dylan and Ethan. ‘It’s truly special.
‘It’s been a tough few weeks but the love and support I’ve been shown has been second to none,’ he added. ‘I feel it deeply. I had 15 years at Leicester – and many years before that sat in the stands.
Lewis Moody delivered an emotional speech in his first public appearance since revealing his MND diagnosis
Moody spoke to a 17,000-strong crowd ahead of Leicester Tigers’ clash with Bath
‘Then I got the privilege of going to Bath as well. When people ask me who I support – Bath is my home, I’ve been there 15 years, my son is a mascot there and they love it. But Leicester is always my rugby home.’
Moody’s picture sits between Peter Wheeler and Neil Back on the Wall of Legends on Aylestone Road. He last played for the club in 2010. He was a part of a golden generation and on Saturday afternoon he was joined by the likes of Martin Corry, Harry Ellis, Leon Lloyd, Tom Croft and George Chuter.
These days, the club is in the hands of the likes of Ollie Chessum, Freddie Steward and Hanro Liebenberg who are trying to lead the club back to those glory years. There is a long way to go but this was a landmark victory in the early stages of the Geoff Parling regime.
Nicky Smith and Joe Heyes drew penalties at the scrum, tapping into that traditional DNA. Cameron Henderson put pressure on Ben Spencer’s kicking game with his giant frame and Leicester forced errors from Bath’s new-look backline.
The combination Finn Russell and Santi Carreras that will cut opponents to ribbons with their silky skills as the season progresses, but this was a day when grunt beat grace.
Bath often looked sharper in transition attack, with Dan Frost, Sam Underhill and Cameron Redpath scoring in the first half. Leicester’s tries were driven over from short-range, fighting for scraps, with winger Adam Radwan coming out on top in his duel with Henry Arundell.
The two wingers are competing for selection in Steve Borthwick’s England squad and Parling offered a glowing reference after Radwan’s performance.
‘We all know Radders can beat someone in a phonebox,’ said Parling. ‘I’ve been really pleased this season with his defensive work and his aerial game, which is so important at Test level.
‘We know Ben Spencer is an outstanding kicker of the ball but we’ve got some outstanding back three who can catch, chase and do other things so I wasn’t too worried there because I think we’re the best in that area.
‘Radders did bloody well. Arundell did some good things as well, he’s like a little rocket of power, but for me Radders has certainly put himself in a position to get back in that international frame. Get him in there.’
During Moody’s era, Leicester had a history of taking southern hemisphere recruits to their hearts. The likes of Lote Tuqiri, Aaron Mauger and Pat Howard. Now the terraces are hoping to see the best of James O’Connor, with the Wallaby No10 voted man of the match on his home debut. He launched attacks from his own 22, unleashing Radwan and Ollie Hassell-Collins down the wings.
‘I’ve started three different 10s in four games, which for most teams isn’t an ideal position,’ said Parling. ‘We wanted James’s steady head and experience and we saw that. At times we probably over played slightly in our own half, but I’m really proud he had a crack when he thought it was on.’
O’Connor broke the line in the build-up for Smith’s try in the 45th minute, when the hosts wrestled back the lead. Bath are renowned for their squad depth but Leicester knuckled up in defence, with Solomone Kate forcing a turnover with a crunching tackle.
Errors crept into Bath’s game. Spencer and Arundell both misguided kicks, but Russell still edged his side ahead in the 73rd minute.
Then came that familiar roar. The evening chill had kicked in, yet the temperature seemed to rise as the clock went into red. Leicester churned their way through 14 phases before Thomas du Toit flew into Searle with a reckless high tackle.
Searle got back to his feet to kick the winning goal, right in front of Moody and his old mates. It felt like it was never going to end any other way.
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