Bath trio in heated international, club-mates score in play-offs

Three Bath Rugby players featured in the bad-tempered Nations Championship match between Argentina and England on Saturday 18th July.

Guy Pepper, Ben Spencer and Santi Carreras are Bath Rugby team-mates here at The Rec but they became rivals when Argentina hosted England on Saturday 18th July | Photo © Richard Briggs

Blue, Black & White back row Guy Pepper was in the England starting XV and the Somerset club’s scrum-half and skipper Ben Spencer came off the bench for the final 10 minutes of the visitors’ 31-24 victory at Estadio Único Madre de Ciudades, Santiago del Estero.

Bath’s Santi Carreras played at full-back for Los Pumas in the Round 3 game but became one of seven players – three from Argentina, four from England – to be yellow-carded by referee Angus Gardner. Carreras was sin-binned for a deliberate knock-on.

Blue, Black & White back row Josh Bayliss was in the Scotland starting XV – and was one of three vice-captains – as Fiji were defeated 33-17 in a Round 3 ‘away’ game played at Scottish Gas Murrayfield, Edinburgh, on 18th July.

Fiji have staged their home fixtures in the UK this summer.

Scotland are second in the Northern Hemisphere table at the conclusion of the Southern Series. They trail leaders France by one point. England are third, a point behind the Scots.

The Northern Series will take place in the autumn, with the Championship’s finals weekend at the Allianz Stadium, London, from 27th to 29th November.

A trio of Bath youngsters touched down in play-off finals at the World Rugby Junior World Championship, Georgia.

Wings Tyler Offiah and Sam Winters were in the England U20 starting XV for the third-place play-off final against New Zealand U20 on 18th July. The duo scored a try apiece but England were beaten 41-26.

Blue, Black & White lock Enoch Opoku-Gyamfi was in the starting XV for Italy U20 in their ninth-place play-off final on 18th July. Opoku-Gyamfi notched Italy’s opening try but Ireland won the game 34-26.

Bath trio Oscar Thomas, Alex Ridgway and Bailey Cutts were all used replacements for Wales U20 in their fifth-place play-off final against Scotland U20 on Friday 17th July. The Scots prevailed 28-21.

Two Bath players are in the England U18 squad for the 2026 U18 International Series in South Africa.

Forwards Ben Allen and Henry Sui have been selected for the annual age-grade tour being hosted in the Stellenbosch region of the Western Cape.

England will open their trip by facing Georgia at Durbanville High School on Friday 7th August.

Matches against France (Tuesday 11th August) and South Africa (Saturday 15th August) will follow.

England U20 squad:

Forwards: Ben Allen (Bath), Seva Batikora (Leicester Tigers), Kwame Bekoe (Leicester Tigers), Charlie Bray (Sale Sharks), Fin Charles (Leicester Tigers), Kaiden Corbett (Bristol Bears), Joe Edmunds (Leicester Tigers), Tiane Elone (Saracens), Jordan Ikeh (Sale Sharks), Ediz Karsak (Saracens), Jeremy Keys (Exeter Chiefs), Lawrence Ogbonnaya (Sale Sharks), Aiden Reid (Northampton Saints), Henry Sui (Bath), Ellis Woolrych (Harlequins).

Backs: Will Bayston (Sale Sharks), Will Catley (Northampton Saints), Sonny Goode (Northampton Saints), Archie Guyver (Exeter Chiefs), Zac Jones (Gloucester Rugby), Jack McIntosh (Exeter Chiefs), Will McIntosh (Exeter Chiefs), Will Moore (Bristol Bears), Charles Morgan (Saracens), Caspar Reeves (Bristol), Oscar Talbot (Leicester Tigers), Taniel Tumusiime (Saracens), Jack Tyler (Harlequins).