Premiership: Leicester Tigers 16-38 Bath

Josh Matavesi's delightful solo run set up the pick of Bath's tries after the break

Rampant Bath scored four first-half tries as they made light work of a young Leicester side at Welford Road.

A brisk Tigers start and two Johnny McPhillips penalties earned a 6-0 lead, but Bath's nous and physicality saw them secure a bonus point by the break.

Will Stuart and Tom Dunn bundled over, as did fellow forward Lewis Boyce following Ruaridh McConnochie's score.

Beno Obano and Tom de Glanville added to the total while Charlie Clare and Luke Wallace went over for Tigers.

Clare's try came after another well-worked move by the forwards, while Wallace's score rounded off a fine team effort and was reward for a gutsy home performance.

But it could not hide the fact Tigers were outclassed throughout by a Bath side who have climbed back above Northampton and into fifth place.

Saints also earned a bonus-point win, against London Irish earlier on Saturday, as the race for a top-four Premiership place gets increasingly tense.

Tigers head coach Steve Borthwick, the former long-serving Bath lock, made 13 changes in his second game in charge and the early signs were encouraging with the home side's energy and athleticism seeming to trouble the visitors.

But the ruthless nature of Bath's forward play was too much for Borthwick's men, and Stuart and Dunn's scores had an unsettling effect.

Obano emerged from another powerful surge by the forwards to score his side's sixth try

The game was as good as over by the time the forwards combined for Boyce to go over for the fourth try.

A mauling looked on the cards when Obano added another close-range finish and the pick of the tries made it 38-6 soon after the restart.

Josh Matavesi was the creator, a brilliant dummy and solo run from his own half giving De Glanville, the son of former England captain Phil, a simple chance before Tigers made the scoreline more respectable.

Leicester director of rugby Geordan Murphy: "We picked the side as a coaching group together, and we were in agreement with the side we wanted to pick.

"It was really important on the back of the short pre-season we had that we gave guys the opportunity to go and play.

"Obviously, we are not happy with the result, but the young guys did a pretty reasonable job and they will learn from that and benefit down the line."

Bath director of rugby Stuart Hooper: "Leicester came out with a huge amount of energy, and we didn't start with quite the intensity we needed.

"We are working towards being a team that challenges each other versus what the opposition bring.

"If we want to be a championship-winning team, we have got to make sure that whoever is in front of us, we can go through those moments and really work our way through and execute.

"It is a mark of a quality side if you can do that."

Leicester Tigers: Henry; Potter, Worth, Porter, Simmons; McPhillips, White (capt); Leatigaga, Kerr, Heyes, Lavanini, Enever, Martin, Wallace, Smith.

Replacements: Clare, Bower, Cole, Henderson, Coghlan, Van Poortvliet, Hardwick, Steward.

Bath: Watson; Rokoduguni, Joseph, Redpath, McConnochie; Priestland, Spencer; Boyce, Dunn, Stuart, McNally, Ewels (capt), Ellis, Underhill, Faletau.

Replacements: Walker, Obano, Judge, Stooke, Bayliss, Chudley, Matavesi, De Glanville.

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