Marching on
Bath Rugby move into second spot in table
If Bath go on to win the Gallagher Premiership in 2019/20 they will look back on performances like the stunning 31-20 comeback against Gloucester Rugby and say this is the night we did it.
Needing all five match points from the contest with the race for the play-off’s tighter than ever, Bath found themselves 20-3 down after an hour of frustration on their home turf.
The table will tell you Gloucester had little left to play for coming into the game, well off the battle for the play-offs after a season of inconsistency.
But this is the West Country derby and the Cherry and Whites were in test match rugby mood early on, taking every point when they had the chance to smash and grab their way to a 13-3 half-time lead thanks to a fantastic try from Chris Harris.
The centre scored following a sharp break from Lloyd Evans who once again acquitted himself brilliantly in the place of the absent Danny Cipriani who is struggling with a calf issue.
After the break the Cherry and Whites crossed again with Jake Polledri making inroads into the Bath defence before some neat hands from Harris put Matt Banahan in against his old club.
But this Bath side are the form club in the Gallagher Premiership and they saved their season with four tries in 18 dramatic and dominant minutes of club rugby.
Man of the match Tom Dunn touched down the first two scores following maul drives from the forwards. The third was another powerful drive from close range from replacement prop Lewis Boyce that gave Bath an unlikely lead for the first time in the match with six minutes left on the clock.
But the fairytale for Bath was not fully written yet, after 12 months out with a horrible knee injury Joe Cokanasiga played a starring role in the try which could well end the club’s five year wait to return to the play-offs.
The ball was worked to the wide channel for the England man. Taking the ball almost standing still from a offload, Cokanasiga accelerated, stepped in to out to off-balance Evans then broke the tackle of Jack Singleton before drawing the final defender, Joe Simpson, to feed Ben Spencer who raced in and finish the job.
The comeback, from 17 points down, symbolised where both clubs are in their evolution under relatively new bosses. Bath, under Stuart Hooper, look set for the playoffs and a run at the title as they ride on the crest of a powerful wave of momentum which has been built up since rugby restarted in August, winning seven out of eight games.
Gloucester are improved but a long way off where they need to be to still be in the hunt for silverware with one game of the regular season to go.
Bath Rugby: Watson, Rokoduguni (Cokanasiga), Joseph, Matavesi (Redpath), Mcconnochie, Priestland, Spencer (Chudley), Obano (Boyce), Dunn, Stuart, Stooke (Mcnally), Ewels, Ellis (Reid), Underhill, Faletau. Subs not used: Walker, Judge.
Tries: Dunn (2), Boyce, Spencer. Cons: Priestland (4). Pens: Priestland.
Gloucester Rugby: Banahan, Thorley (Rees-zammit), Harris (Seabrook), Twelvetrees, May, Evans, Heinz (Simpson), Rapavaruskin (Fourie), Singleton, Balmain (Stanley), Garvey, Alemanno (Slater), Polledri (Reid), Ludlow, Ackermann. Subs not used: Walker.
Tries: Harris, Banahan. Cons: Twelvetrees (2). Pens: Twelvetrees (2).
Referee: Craig Maxwell-keys