Mick Cleary
Bath look the real deal in thrilling win
The madcap, wacky, all-singin’, all dancin’ world of Premiership rugby continued into its final fixture of the weekend, with try records set – 50 in total – as six more were scored, and three yellow cards were handed out to Bath in the final 10 minutes, pain they were prepared to shoulder as they claimed their first league win at Welford Road since 2003 and resisted a desperate but ultimately doomed fightback.
Manu Tuilagi scored on his return, Jonny May bagged a late brace on his Leicester debut, but it was Bath, prematurely written off as contenders, who had the heart, if not the cool head, to prevail.
Bath rode their luck, took their chances, showed huge guts in defence and stuck at it. Three yellows, two for high tackles, speaks of ill-discipline. But it also indicates desire. And, in the peerless No8, Toby Faletau, Bath had the standout performer. It was breathless, nervy, flawed but invigorating.
The world has tilted on its axis with southern hemisphere Super Rugby attitudes implanted in the north. The new tackle law has changed outlooks.
No more safety-first, no more wait and see, no more keep it tight, and, perhaps, no more getting defensive hands on the ball as easily. The Leicester hallmark used to be one of pragmatism. No more. They could perhaps have done with some of that canniness as they let slip an early lead and dominance but, hey, with a back line eager to be allowed off the leash, there is little point in the cautious approach.
But it was Bath’s backline that proved their equal, if not more, with the less heralded centre Max Clark bagging a couple of tries and showing resolve and cleverness across the board. Matt Banahan, despite his late sin-binning, the third to depart in that crazy finale, crossing with his scrum-half, Kahn Fotuali’i, as he returned following his yellow, was a steadfast figure.
Bath are all too aware of their status as under-achievers, finishing fifth last season and so intent on improving their dismal form away from home that they took themselves off every Tuesday to various sides over the summer to simulate playing on the road. It paid off here.
“Those practice games were all preparation for here and we turned up ready to go,” said director of rugby, Todd Blackadder. “That last 20 minutes, when Leicester came back at us, I wondered if we would blow it but we didn’t. It was all hands to the pump. We hung on by our fingernails. We can’t afford to put ourselves at risk [with the yellow cards] and we will take lessons from that. But we will also take a lot of confidence from the win.”
As well they should, denying Leicester, who had recovered from 27-11 down in the 70th minute when the yellow cards began to be flourished, with a stolen five-metre lineout in the very last play.
Leicester had looked set fair. There was pace and energy and wit behind the scrum, enough grunt up-front to deliver the ball. George Ford was busy and alert, spraying passes, encouraging his men into the game. Manu had a rumble, May a wriggle, Matt Toomua a longawaited elegant glide. The Tigers appeared to be in the groove, forcing Bath into conceding a raft of penalties. Manu even had the joy of scoring the opening try in what was his first game since January. After so much trouble and strife, it was a lovely sight to see him run free to the try-line in the 24th minute after good build-up work from Ben Youngs, Telusa Veainu and Brendon O’connor.
Instead of using that score as a springboard to even better things, Leicester went horribly flat. And Bath took full advantage with three tries in 12 minutes, two of them due to Leicester indifference in the tackle or rushed play. Banahan went down the left flank to make some serious inroads, finding centre Clark, with a neat inside pass for the try. Clark was on the end of what used to be a trademark ploy in these parts, the close-range lineout followed by pick-and-go drives round the edges. Here it was Bath doing a Leicester.
Then came the final indignity for Leicester just as it seemed as if they were gathering themselves. They picked up the tempo, moving swiftly left with Ford looking for possibilities. Instead the fly-half found the man he had been used to finding for the last few years, his former Bath team-mate, Semesa Rokoduguni. The wing needed no
second bidding. He was away, out of the Leicester 22 and May could not get to him. And with that, Bath headed down the tunnel with a 21-8 lead. Two second-half penalties from Rhys Priestland, with one back from Ford, set the scene for the zany denouement.
Bath had been warned about high tackles. Fotuali’i was first to depart in the 70th minute followed soon afterwards by Matt Garvey. Leicester wasted chances before May went in at the corner, then finishing brilliantly for his second in the 77th minute. The crowd came alive, roared their men forward but the final line-out fluff denied them a miraculous outcome.