Blackadder seeks perfection despite bonus point victory
The bonus point was in the bag but Bath Rugby’s 30-13 win over Newcastle Falcons left Todd Blackadder wanting more.
He took many more positives from the Premiership clash than negatives but admitted there are still areas to tighthen up in the final nine games of the season. Semesa Rokoduguni, Joe Cokanasiga, Will Chudley and Francois Louw were the try-scorers as Bath moved up from eighth to sixth in the table. Reflecting on the performance, their director of rugby said: “I’m pleased with the fact we got the bonus point we were searching for. “I was pleased that at times we showed our attack and what momentum looks like for us. When we ran hard and got our cleaners in and got really quick ball, we played on top and scored four tries. “I was really pleased with our setpiece. To score a try off a set-piece scrum [the first by Rokoduguni] is something we’ve been trying to achieve. “I thought our lineout just before half-time was brilliant and our desperation, our counter attack was really good.” Winning 20-6 at the half-time and having scored through Chudley shortly before the break, it looked like Bath might have pushed on for a comfortable win. But the third quarter was littered with indiscipline and mistakes which allowed the Falcons to get themselves back in the contest and tested the hosts’ resolve. They came back to life late in the game to deliver the fourth try courtesy of Louw, who caught the defence napping from a ruck. “There were certainly some moments around our discipline that we weren’t happy with,” said Blackadder as he considered the work-ons. “The plan from the start was to play our style of rugby. At times we did that but some of the things we did around our basics just aren’t good enough. “We put a massive emphasis on those things and when we don’t get those things right we take a lot of momentum away from us. “For example I think we got a penalty, a lineout, Joe hit it up and we didn’t have an inside clean. Newcastle were on the ball, firstphase turnover. That’s the sort of stuff that hurts us.” The director of rugby added: “I thought we took blindsides probably too much with ball in hand and there were probably about four forward passes in all of that. “We’re not looking for excuses. We just need to be better and we will be.” Blackadder provided updates on Semesa Rokoduguni and Dave Attwood, who both left the field with injuries. “He just took a bone on bone on his knee and it was really sore, but he’s pretty tough,” Blackadder said of Roko. Attwood suffered a “stinger” to his right shoulder.
Bath Rugby flexed some of their muscles but left room for improvement as they delivered the bonuspoint win they sorely needed against Newcastle Falcons. Rhys Priestland opened the scoring with a penalty in front of the posts, soon cancelled out by his opposite number Toby Flood. Attacking off the back of a scrum, Priestland found Tom Homer behind Jonathan Joseph’s hard line and the full-back found Semesa Rokoduguni in plenty of space with a lovely looped pass over the top of Sinoti Sinoti. After Flood slotted another penalty, Rokoduguni was the instigator for Bath’s second. Louw found him on the right touchline and even though he was covered by three defenders, he cut inside and made 20m. Dave Attwood took the attack on with a piercing carry, quick ball found its way to Jonathan Joseph, whose grubber to the corner was so perfect Joe Cokanasiga was able to dive and dot it down in extravagant single motion. The next came when Priestland and Joseph ghosted left and Will Chudley used them as a decoy before showing strength to squeeze over. Bath’s indiscipline kept Falcons in the contest after half-time. Nemani Nagusa touched the ball down for Falcons only from a setpiece move. Bath began to get some territory and a nudge on in the scrums, and a Priestland penalty made it a twoscore game once more. Bath were a little bit edgy as play entered the final ten minutes and they still needed another try for the bonus point. That came when hooker Santiago Socino dropped a clanger in his 22m. The scrum was solid, battering carries from tireless Elliott Stooke, Cokanasiga and Jamie Roberts took play to the Falcons line before Louw snuck over.