Premiership: Gloucester 31-28 Bristol Bears - Adam Hastings' late penalty edges West Country derby

Val Rapava-Ruskin scored his second Premiership brace of the season in four appearances

Gloucester condemned Bristol to a third straight defeat after edging a titanic West Country derby at Kingsholm.

Gloucester's Jordy Reid and Val Rapava-Ruskin had tries cancelled out by Sam Bedlow and Piers O'Conor before Freddie Clarke edged the hosts 21-14 ahead.

Ellis Genge tied the scores again after the break before Andy Uren put Bristol ahead for the first time.

Rapava-Ruskin made it 28-28 to tee up a tense final quarter, and Adam Hastings' penalty won it with three minutes left.

Bristol went closest to a fifth try when Uren ignored a scoring pass and was stopped just metres short.

But it was Gloucester who had the momentum in the final 20 minutes and when the Bears were penalised at the breakdown, Hastings held his nerve to slot the first penalty kick at goal of the match, adding to his perfect haul of four conversions.

It completed back-to-back derby victories after beating Bath last weekend as a third win from four attempts this campaign lifts Gloucester to fourth, while Bristol drop to fifth.

Charles Piutau underlined a shaky Bristol start when he inadvertently allowed Santiago Carreras' 50:22 kick to bounce into touch, providing the platform for flanker Reid's opening try.

The Bears responded well and were unlucky to trail having had the better of an intense, but sometimes scrappy first half, and after Piutau went close, centre Bedlow showed strength to spin out of a tackle and dot down on the stretch.

Pat Lam's side continued to dominate territory, but mistakes handed back the lead as an overthrown lineout and fluffed clearance kick allowed Rapava-Ruskin to go straight through the middle and dive over.

Genge's break and Uren's clever pass set O'Conor free to level, but a seesaw final 10 minutes swung again when back row Clarke bundled over after smart work from scrum-half Ruan Ackermann.

England prop Genge unleashed his trademark power to cross under the posts for his fourth try of the season to level once more early in the second half.

Bristol looked to turn the screw and went close when Uren's sensational finish tight to the touchline was chalked off for a foot in touch.

Louis Rees-Zammit then knocked the ball out of Dan Thomas' hands as the Bears back row was set to touch down, but from the resulting scrum, Fitz Harding fed Uren to put Bristol ahead for the first time after 57 minutes.

Yet a pulsating derby would turn once more as the Cherry and Whites hit back through Rapava-Ruskin with their first attack of the half to square the match a fourth time before Hastings' late show.

Gloucester head coach George Skivington told BBC Radio Gloucestershire:

"There are some spaces you have to allow them to make metres, you can't be aggressive in every area, and Bristol are very good at using those spaces and making metres. That is their game.

"I thought the doggedness, the character of the boys was outstanding, but we've still got a lot of work to do.

"We had some good plays and probably got sucked into their mindset a little bit which isn't our game, and then there were probably a few moments when we tightened up when it got tense that we could have played.

"We are in most games, and key periods of managing those areas right are crucial and define the result in the end."

Bristol Bears director of rugby Pat Lam told BBC Radio Bristol:

"First half I think there were 18 or 19 turnovers which was a big issue, whether it's our lineout or poor kicking, we ended up not being consistent and gave them free-kicks, chances and space to run.

"We spoke at half-time that when we stay in our system, our shape, we put them under a lot of pressure and the boys came up well in the second half.

"We butchered a lot of tries and it became neck and neck and about the team which showed indiscipline and unfortunately we gave away a crucial penalty, and fair play to Gloucester."

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Gloucester: Carreras, Rees-Zammit, Harris, Kveseladze, May, Hastings, Meehan, Rapava-Ruskin, Singleton, Balmain, Clarke, Alemanno, Reid, Ludlow (c), Ackermann.

Replacements: Socino, Elrington, Knight, Jordan, Tuisue, Varney, Reeves, Evans.

Bristol: Piutau, Morahan, O'Conor, Bedlow, Purdy, Sheedy, Whiteley, Genge, Capon, Sinckler, Batley, Joyce, Vui, Thomas, Harding.

Replacements: Thacker, Woolmore, Lahiff, Hawkins, Lewis, Uren, MacGinty, Bates.

Referee: Wayne Barnes.