Rugby Union: Tindall draws Tigers' teeth

Bath 24

Leicester 16

BATH HAD a miserable Christmas, during which they lost five matches in a row, but Easter has brought redemption. Yesterday they ended Leicester's monotonous drive to the Allied Dunbar Premiership with a performance that was almost vintage Bath. The match itself was bizarre, with the referee, Ashley Rowden, awarding two penalty tries, a white card for the England flanker Neil Back, several lectures and 33 penalties.

Bath, fresh from out-playing Saracens, won by a goal, a try and four penalties to a goal and three penalties. Their priority, the only goal left to them, is to ensure they qualify for Europe next season. It is the least they can do after being deprived of the opportunity to defend the European Cup which they won last season.

Despite suffering their first league defeat since November, Leicester, who had compiled a record 10 successive victories, have only to dot the i's in the Premiership to secure the title.

The match came alive only midway through the second half when, with the score at 9-9, Bath drove from a line-out close to the Leicester line and were immediately rewarded with a penalty try after the opposition had pulled down the maul.

This may have been a good day for the West Country but it was bad news for England. Jeremy Guscott, who has been out with a hamstring problem, was meant to return to action at the Recreation Ground yesterday, and was named as Bath captain. Instead he made a late withdrawal and will have to prove his fitness this week before Clive Woodward names the side to play Wales in the Five Nations finale at Wembley next Sunday. As things turned out, Guscott's withdrawal did Bath no harm whatsoever. His replacement, Mike Tindall, had a great game and he, more than anybody else, was responsible for breaking Leicester's renowned defence.

It was a Tindall run that created the position for Bath's penalty try and two minutes after that he again wrong-footed Leicester with a powerful cross-field break before brilliantly releasing Iain Balshaw, who sprinted clear from 35 yards.

At 21-9 that put clear blue water between Bath and the Tigers, although the referee still had a card up his sleeve. After another attack inspired by Tindall which led to a Mike Catt penalty, Mr Rowden awarded Leicester a penalty try. It was even more controversial than the first. Bemusement all round, but perhaps it had something to do with balancing the scales. In the end justice was done although Eric Peters, who had taken over the captaincy from Guscott, was not there to see it, having been stretchered off with a fractured knee-cap which rules him out of the Scotland team to face France in Paris on Saturday and indeed the rest of the season.

In a shocking first half, Leicester had come out fighting. The match was only six minutes old when Martin Corry was warned and penalised after a punch-up. Catt's kick put Bath ahead and two minutes later, in another off-the-ball incident, Back threw a punch at Russell Earnshaw and was sin-binned.

Leicester won a series of penalties, Tim Stimpson landing two out of three kicks at goal to put the Tigers 6-3 in front after 21 minutes. Then it was the turn of the front rows, who were at it hammer and tongs from the first scrum, to cut out the nonsense. Catt kicked two more penalties in three minutes to give Bath a half time lead of 9-6. Stimpson's third penalty in the 57th minute brought Leicester level before Bath's penalty try changed the complexion of the game.

Bath: M Perry; I Balshaw, M Tindall, K Maggs, A Adebayo; M Catt, G Cooper; D Hilton, M Regan, V Ubogu (K Yates, 79), M Haag, S Borthwick, R Earnshaw, D Lyle, E Peters (capt; R Bryan, 71).

Leicester: T Stimpson; N Ezulike (J Ferris, 79), C Joiner, P Howard, D Lougheed; G Murphy, J Hamilton; G Rowntree, R Cockerill (D West, 66), D Garforth, M Johnson (capt), F van Heerden, L Moody (P Gustard, 70), M Corry (W Johnson 70), N Back.

Referee: A Rowden (Thatcham).