Ben Spencer’s class puts Bath on right path

By Paul Rees

Gloucester …………………… 31pts

Tries: Llewellyn 8, Williams 20, C Atkinson 23, Thorley 68

Conversions: Carreras 9, 21, 24; Barton 69

Penalty: Carreras 40

Bath ……………………………… 55pts

Tries: Obano 5, 43; Russell 26, Penalty 46, Bayliss 53, de Glanville 64, Lawrence 71, Coetzee 77

Conversions: Russell 6, 27, 44, 72, 79

Penalty: Russell 11

Gloucester are playing with their hearts, but Bath won another high scoring West Country derby by using their heads.

Last season’s beaten finalists did not deviate from their approach despite trailing by 11 points after 25 minutes and went on to secure their highest score against their rivals.

Bath shipped 64 points at Kingsholm 30 months ago, but are now title contenders.

Ben Spencer

Ben Spencer used the dominance of his pack to dictate play, exploiting the wind to hold kicks in the first half and gain distance after the break.

It gave the visitors a control Gloucester lacked but at least the side that finished one of the bottom last season has a clear vision and Bath did not turn it around in a few weeks.

Position used to be nine-tenths of the score until the Premiership turned into a human engine version of Wacky Races.

It started that way here, Bath gaining ground through two box-kicks from Spencer who used the wind for Ted Hill to beat first Josh Hathaway then Ollie Thorley to the ball.

Hill, playing out of position in the second row, was a handful throughout and wrecked Gloucester’s lineout, and his aerial conquests helped give Bath a foothold they used to fashion the opening try through Beno Obano after running a penalty from close range.

The bulk of the capacity crowd fell silent, but Gloucester have vowed this season not to die wondering.

First Half

They lost second row Arthur Clark in the warm-up and three players went off for early head injury assessments, only one of whom returned, but led at half-time having spent most of the opening 40 minutes in their own half.

Bath were at their most threatening from close range, using a steady supply of penalties to get into the home 22, but Gloucester were primed to go from anywhere and their three first half tries had their origin a long way from Bath’s line.

Max Llewellyn scored the first quickly after Obano’s opener, in space to receive Hathaway’s inside pass after three defenders converged on the wing to finish a move started by prop Afolabi Fasogbon’s bold pass, and Tomos Williams’s supporting run earned him the second after Thorley’s surge along the left wing.

The third was the best, started by Zack Mercer on his 22.

The No.8 danced into space and kept his balance after being eventually collared to find Williams outside and Charlie Atkinson’s inside line left the replacement outside-half with a clear run.

Gloucester were 11 points ahead and value for their lead because of their ambition and skill, but what they did not have was a foundation.

Second Half

Their lineout was suspect throughout at both ends of the field, they were outmuscled around the fringes and their ball slowed down with Bath’s extra forward on the bench telling in the final 30 minutes.

It meant they always had to take a chance. They were denied a try when Austin Emens was unable to hold on to the ball in front of his line, but Hathaway was penalised for going off his feet and the rest of the match belonged to Bath.

After Mercer’s pass rolled towards Gloucester’s line, Jack Singleton weighted his chip rather than putting his boot through the ball and although he tackled Tom de Glanville, Finn Russell scored his first try for Bath having earlier kicked a penalty.

A Santi Carreras penalty made it 24-17 to Gloucester at the interval, but Bath started the second period as they had the first with an Obano try after a penalty and took the lead with a penalty try after Charlie Atkinson denied Spencer from an off-side position and saw yellow.

Tries from Josh Bayliss and de Glanville followed before the deserving Thorley secured a bonus point for Gloucester whose quest for a second faded when the prominent Ollie Lawrence and Jaco Coetzee took Bath over the half-century for the first time in the fixture.