Bath Rugby came out on top in a ding-dong battle with Saracens on Saturday 4th April to secure a place in the Investec Champions Cup quarter-finals for the first time in 11 years.
Bath Rugby overcame a determined Saracens side here at The Rec on Saturday 4th April to reach the Investec Champions Cup quarter-finals | Photo © Richard Briggs
The Blue, Black & White found visiting Saracens an altogether tougher proposition than when the sides met at The Rec on Friday 20th March.
Home director of rugby Johann van Graan had said that his team’s 62-15 victory in Gallagher PREM Round 11 would have no bearing on the European tie just a fortnight later.
And he was correct, Bath emerging 31-22 winners of a high-quality match but needing a try right at the end to kill off the North Londoners’ challenge.
The reward for winning the Round of 16 clash is a tussle with Northampton Saints at The Rec in the last eight, the game presenting the Blue, Black & White the chance to lay to rest the ghosts of their home defeat by the Midlanders in the PREM on Saturday 27th December.
Saracens bossed the first half and deservedly led 10-0 at the turnaround, only for Bath to make a superb display in the second period and secure their first appearance in the last eight since they lost to Leinster in 2015.
However, it seemed that spectators might have trouble seeing the action as the black smoke from the pre-match pyrotechnics created a thick fog that refused to fully clear until more than 20 seconds into the match and left a smell of cordite in the air.
Sarries scored the afternoon’s first points when, following a maul, Charlie Bracken suckered Joe Cokanasiga into a dummy 20 metres out and dashed through to touch down to the left of the posts in the 14th minute. Owen Farrell converted.
Bath’s Guy Pepper was sin-binned in the 27th minute. And the visitors extended their lead to 10-0 in the 38th minute, Farrell landing a 20-metre penalty from just to the right of the posts.
But with Thomas du Toit arriving from the bench at the start of the second half and making an outstanding contribution that earned him the Investec man-of-the-match accolade, it was not long before the Blue, Black & White ate into the deficit.
Following a pass from Charlie Ewels in the 44th minute, Henry Arundell surged away 45 metres out, sidestepped a defender and, just to the right of the posts, rolled over the try line with Saracens’ Noah Caluori clinging onto him. Finn Russell booted the extras.
Bath were back down to 14 players when, in the 46th minute, Beno Obano was shown the yellow card by stand-in referee Ben Connor, who took over from the injured Nika Amashukeli at the start of the second half.
But the hosts moved in front four minutes later, Cokanasiga seizing the loose ball 20 metres out after a mis-pass from Ollie Lawrence and cutting through the defence to score just to the left of the posts. Russell’s conversion left Bath 14-10 in front.
And – before another sellout crowd of 14,509 – the advantage was increased in the 59th minute, when the Blue, Black & White turned defence into a stunning length-of-the-field try.
Saracens had been pressing the Bath try line. But the hosts won a turnover, resulting in Cokanasiga hurtling down the right to the home 10-metre line and passing to Alfie Barbeary. The number 8 made 20 metres before releasing Ben Spencer for a sprint to the right corner and a try against the side with whom he won the Champions Cup three times. Russell’s conversion attempt was off target.
But Sarries were not finished. And in the 67th minute, Caluori set up Max Malins for a 20-metre try in the left corner. Farrell failed from the tee.
The side from Hendon had Harry Wilson yellow-carded in the 70th minute, following a challenge on Miles Reid.
And Bath seemed to have sealed their passage to the quarter-finals when, two minutes later, they added their fourth touchdown. After a pass from Spencer, Lawrence spun over from four metres for a try just to the left of the posts, Russell kicked the two points and the lead was 26-15.
The 11-point cushion was short-lived as, in the 74th minute, Caluori received a lofted pass from Elliot Daly and scored on the right, Fergus Burke majoring.
But right at the end, Bath bagged their fifth try. Spencer swung the ball out to Arundell who crashed over from short range in the left corner, Russell’s missed conversion being the final act of the game.
Bath starting XV: 1 Beno Obano, 2 Tom Dunn, 3 Archie Griffin, 4 Quinn Roux, 5 Charlie Ewels, 6 Josh Bayliss, 7 Guy Pepper, 8 Alfie Barbeary, 9 Ben Spencer, 10 Finn Russell, 11 Henry Arundell, 12 Max Ojomoh, 13 Ollie Lawrence, 14 Joe Cokanasiga, 15 Santi Carreras.
Bath replacements: 16 Kepu Tuipulotu, 17 Francois van Wyk, 18 Thomas du Toit, 19 Ted Hill, 20 Sam Underhill, 21 Bernard van der Linde, 22 Cameron Redpath, 23 Miles Reid.
Saracens starting XV: 1 Rhys Carre, 2 Jamie George, 3 Marcus Street, 4 Maro Itoje, 5 Hugh Tizard, 6 Theo McFarland, 7 Andy Onyeama-Christie, 8 Tom Willis, 9 Charlie Bracken, 10 Fergus Burke, 11 Tobias Elliott, 12 Owen Farrell, 13 Nick Tompkins, 14 Noah Caluori, 15 Elliot Daly.
Saracens replacements: 16 Theo Dan, 17 Eroni Mawi, 18 Marco Riccioni, 19 Harry Wilson, 20 Nathan Michelow, 21 Ivan van Zyl, 22 Alex Lozowski, 23 Max Malins.
The quarter-final against the Saints will be played at The Rec on Friday 10th April (8pm). Tickets went on general sale at 10am today, Monday 6th April, from https://www.eticketing.co.uk/bathrugby/Events.
