No change as Bath fail to seize the day

By PAUL REES

Bath ………………..17pts

Tries: Reid 24, Dunn 50, Annett 62 Conversions: Francis 25

Gloucester ……..21pts

Tries: Alemanno 10, 36; Socino 19 Conversions: Hastings 11, 20, 37

BATH have been a second-half team this season but they again left themselves with too much to do in the longest running derby in English rugby that goes back 140 years.

It said everything about Bath's low confidence that their talisman was a player who a week before had not known when he would next receive a wage package. Ollie Lawrence would have been playing against Gloucester that weekend but for Worcester's collapse and he was ready for them.

There was a sense of drift about Bath from the start. They were not just knocked back when in possession and when defending but they lost four of their line-outs throws in the opening half, the last on Gloucester's 22 with Ben Meehan trudging off to the sin-bin for a high tackle on Cameron Redpath.

Bath have a long injury list but their problems go beyond that. Lawrence brought an attitude they lacked, looking to impose himself in and out of possession while others seemed to be looking for someone to take the lead.

Gloucester put 64 points on Bath last season at Kingsholm having accumulated 40 at the Rec, but even when they led 21-7 at half-time, they were some way below their best, especially when moving the ball despite the intricate weaving of Mark Atkinson in midfield.

It was a game, despite the largely cloudless sky, that was uninspiring given the opening month of the Premiership campaign. The six tries were scored by forwards from close range, the ball had a lot of airtime and Gloucester found themselves dragged down and heavily penalised after the break.

Gloucester led 14-0 after 19 minutes through tries by Santiago Socino and Matias Alemanno from driving mauls, the second one minute after Bath prop Juan Schoeman had received a yellow card for killing the ball near his line. Miles Reid hit back for Bath after Albert Tuisue saw yellow for a no arms tackle on Tom Ellis.

Bath's three tries all came when Gloucester were a man short and they again only showed themselves after being told at half-time where they were going wrong. And Joe Cokanasiga gained an appetite for the ball.

Gloucester have had a stuttered start to the season with a bye week and the Worcester cancellation. They got stuck in but they lacked fluency and, starting the second half with 14 men, found themselves pinned back.

Tom Dunn's try from a rolling maul after 50 minutes stirred the crowd and when Ruan Ackermann saw yellow for entering a maul from the side, replacement hooker Neil Annett's try from another maul brought Bath to within four points with 18 minutes to go.

Their first victory of the season beckoned but they were unable to seize the moment. Gloucester held on until Ackermann returned, rarely breaking out of their own half, although they had a closerange line-out three minutes from the end which Bath repelled before Jamal Ford-Robinson knocked on.

Ackermann won the penalty three minutes over the 80 that settled the match and left Bath wondering why they can finish but not start. In five matches this season, they have only lost one second-half, and that by a point, but have always been behind at the interval.

After an improved second half Bath coach Johann van Graan said: “It shows how the conditioning of the players is improving, which was the priority from the start. We were good enough to win and I was gutted we lost.”