Six-try Bath prove too much for Bristol in derby

Bath bounced back from defeat against Leicester to beat their neighbours Bristol

The Prem

Bath (19) 40

Tries: Pepper, Repath, Du Toit, Cokanasiga, Underhill, Arundell Cons: Russell 5

Bristol (15) 15

Tries: Ravouvou, Oghre Con: Worsley Pen: Worsley

Bath overcame a resilient Bristol 40-15 in a fierce West Country derby at the Rec to move up to second in the Prem before the league's four-week break.

Bristol had their neighbours on the back foot for much of the first half, opening a 10-point lead through Kalaveti Ravouvou and Gabriel Oghre tries and a Sam Worsley penalty.

But Bath mounted a rapid comeback, scoring twice in four minutes as Ollie Lawrence and Cameron Redpath added to Guy Pepper's earlier try to take a four-point lead at the break.

Bristol's defence impressively kept a relentless Bath at bay for long periods until Joe Cokanasiga added the fourth try to open daylight on the scoreboard, and a late flurry saw Sam Underhill and Henry Arundell add two more in the closing minutes.

Finn Russell's clearance from kick-off was charged down to put Bristol immediately on the front foot and it set the tone, as the ball was recycled wide and Ravouvou scored with less than one minute on the clock.

Bath's first attack was held up and their second then repelled from a metre out yet, on the third, they found a way through, as the Bears' clearance only went as far as Russell on halfway and Pepper side-stepped Ravouvou before swan diving over to level the score.

As the conditions worsened, Bristol capitalised.

Scrum-half Kieron Marmion deftly crept to the front of a line-out and a one-two with Oghre, who threw the ball straight to him, allowed the hooker to catch Bath totally off guard and charge over.

Sam Worsley then kicked another three points from the tee to make it 15-5 as tensions flared into scuffles.

Yet Bath were instantly galvanised and pulled one back when Russell chipped the ball for Lawrence to collect and touch down.

With their tails up, they came straight back at Bristol and after 10 phases of pressure, slick passing from Beno Obano and Tom Dunn helped Redpath go over in the corner as Bath somehow headed in at the break 19-15 ahead.

An intercept from Henry Arundell in the closing seconds took Bath's try-tally to six

By the start of the second half the clouds had cleared and Bath were relentless, camping in Bristol's 22 and forcing constant defence from the visitors.

They saw two tries chalked off as checks by the television match official (TMO) revealed knock-ons in both build-ups before Bath found their bonus-point fourth try on 65 minutes.

With Santiago Grondona in the bin following a series of penalties and six Bath replacements all brought on at once, Cokanasiga caught Russell's chip to open an 11-point lead.

Underhill powered over in the dying stages and as the clock ticked into an 86th minute and Bristol tried to score a fourth try of their own to take a point from the game, Arundell snatched an interception and sprinted in for Bath's sixth.

Bath head of rugby Johann van Graan said:

"Loved the attitude to keep going, it felt like we had more in us.

"I don't know where that 20 minutes of weather came from, that wind was almost impossible, they got ahead but very satisfying to go in at the half 19-15.

"Then to nil them in the second half, it was a real 23-man effort. We were over the line twice - twice the TMO came in.

"I felt they were lucky not to receive multiple yellow cards, they were so negative at their own try line. Then again, six forwards coming on gave us a lot of energy.

"I thought the way we defended the 22 in that second half was amazing, they weren't really [ever] five yards out."

Bristol director of rugby Pat Lam said:

"For 65 minutes it was 19-15, with three minutes to go it was 26-15, but at the end the boys wanted to keep going and fighting for it.

"There were some big swings in that game, our penalty count was 26 which is a big penalty count.

"I loved the fight. This four weeks has been hugely challenging but one thing that's really revealing is the character of the group.

"The boys put their bodies on the line - the tackle count I heard is something like 230 to 100. Fitz Harding - 28 tackles - he's a legend, he got a few jackals in there as well.

"You really do see when your back's against the wall with the injuries that we have real character and I'm enjoying that."

Bath: Carreras; Cokanasiga, Lawrence, Redpath, Arundell; Russell, Spencer (c); Obano, Dunn, Du Toit; Roux, Molony, Bayliss, Pepper, Reid.

Replacements: Tuipulotu, Van Wyk, Stuart, Richards, Underhill, Carr-Smith, Ojomoh, Barbeary.

Sin bin: Van Wyk (81)

Bristol: Elizalde; Bates, Moroni, Janse van Rensburg, Ravouvou; Worsley, Marmion; Genge, Oghre, Kloska; Rubiolo, Batley, S. Grondona, Harding (c), Mata.

Replacements: Thacker, Woolmore, Chawatama, Owen, B. Grondona, Lennon, Carrington, Fricker.

Sin bin: Santiago Grondona (59)

Referee: Ian Tempest