Gloucester keep up challenge for Cup glory with Bristol triumph
GLOUCESTER won 38-31 in the Premiership Rugby Cup on Saturday to go top of Pool One but made hard work of it at Kingsholm against arguably a third-string Bristol side.
With both teams missing an array of world-class stars due to internationals and injuries, and with Bristol further impacted with Pat Lam having put out his strongest possible 23 for the 26-18 victory over South Africa A on Thursday night, Gloucester were on top throughout with new centre signing Seb Atkinson and number eight Jake Polledri prominent.
The former Italy international, who came through the Bristol academy before moving up the road, continues on his return from what was feared to be a potentially career-ending knee and leg injury two years ago.
It took less than a minute for Gloucester to score the opening try of the contest as a botched restart from the visitors saw the Cherry and Whites regather the ball and spread it wide for Tom Seabrook to offload out the back of his hand to put Jake Morris over in the left-hand corner.
Gloucester skipper George Barton missed the conversion and Bristol hit back with a penalty for not rolling away.
In the end the hosts’ superior forward power was telling and on 21 minutes Jack Clement powered over after patient phase play by the home side’s forwards.
Ten minutes later, and following a barrage of attacks from the Gloucester maul, the hosts finally powered over for prop Ciaran Knight to touch down.
Bristol hit back with the best try of the game as quick ball at a ruck opened up space for Oscar Lennon to snipe through, he offloaded to centre James Williams who in turn offloaded to Tom Whiteley.
The fly-half stepped the final defender with a big left foot plant and raced in under the posts.
But for all their attacking brilliance moments earlier, the Bears were then guilty of switching off and turning their backs and debutant Atkinson took advantage, quick tapping to himself having won a jackal penalty and running in untouched under the posts to make it 26-10 at half time.
Atkinson was causing havoc again in the second as an early break forced Jake Kerr to kill the ball close to his own tryline to avoid conceding a try, but in doing so the Scottish international earned a yellow card.
With Bristol a man down, Barton exploited the space out wide with a four-man miss-pass off his right hand to Morris who did well to ride the tackle of Whiteley to touch down in the corner.
But Bristol would not be shaken off and Williams finished a try in the corner after a steaming line from new recruit Noah Heward got the visitors close.
After lengthy treatment to Gloucester centre Seabrook, who left the field on a spinal board having been knocked out cold, the Bears struck again with Whiteley finishing a classy, quick passing counter-attack down the tramlines to make it a one-score contest at 31-24.
But just two minutes later a magical break from Cherry and Whites scrumhalf Matty Jones opened up the visitors and a clever switch pass put replacement hooker Seb Blake over the whitewash with the frontrower showing good speed to finish the chance.
Bristol were still not done though and after Cherry and Whites prop Bryan O’connor was shown a yellow card for dropping a maul, the Bears kicked to the corner again and Fred Davies was powered over by the pack.
The victory takes Gloucester top of the pool with a trip to Exeter, a day after their Premiership game with Northampton.
Gloucester: Hathaway; Hearle, Seabrook, Atkinson, Morris; Barton, Jones; Seville, Walker, Knight, Davidson, F Thomas, Clement, Nixon, Polledri. Replacements: Blake, Mcarthur, O’connor, Eite, Bartlett, Miles Adderly-jones, A. Morgan.
Bristol: Heward; Hamid, Ascherl, Williams, Rowson; Whiteley Lennon; Benz-salomon, Kerr, Kloska, Rice, Owen, Tull, D Thomas, Harvey. Replacements: Davies, Sims, Tyack, A Thomas, Duncan, Carter, J Lloyd, Owsley