Bath edge past Exeter in tight Premiership battle

Bath Rugby solidified their position at the top of the Premiership standings with a tense 26-24 victory over Exeter Chiefs in a fiercely contested battle at Sandy Park.

The victory, built on tactical discipline and key individual performances, saw Bath weather an Exeter storm, especially in the final quarter, to claim their third successive league win.

The visitors wasted no time making their intentions clear. Just ten minutes into the game, Bath capitalized on a clinical lineout routine.

The forwards mauled forward, creating a platform for Guy Pepper to storm over the line for the opening try. Finn Russell calmly slotted the conversion to give Bath an early 7-0 lead.

Exeter responded swiftly and physically. In the 21st minute, they won a penalty deep in Bath territory, kicked to touch, and executed a rolling maul of their own.

It was Jacques Vermeulen who emerged from the pile, grounding the ball for Exeter’s first points. However, Henry Slade's conversion attempt sailed wide, keeping Bath narrowly ahead at 7-5.

As the first half ticked down, Exeter mounted another sustained attack. Just before the break, Slade made amends for the missed conversion by calmly slotting a penalty to push his side into the lead for the first time, heading into halftime with an 8-7 advantage.

Bath began the second half with greater urgency. Within seven minutes of the restart, Guy Pepper was at it again. From a breakdown near Exeter’s try line, Pepper spotted a gap and powered through defenders to touch down for his second try of the afternoon. Though the conversion was missed, Bath had regained the lead at 12-8.

The momentum stayed with the visitors. In the 56th minute, after a period of forward dominance, Bath forced another penalty and kicked to the corner.

From the resulting lineout, their maul surged forward once more, and replacement hooker Niall Annett dotted down with confidence. This time, Russell nailed the conversion, stretching the lead to 19-8.

Just as Bath seemed to be cruising, they hit a bump. On 63 minutes, captain Ben Spencer was shown a yellow card for a cynical infringement, reducing his side to 14 men for a crucial stretch of the game. Exeter pounced on the opportunity.

In the 69th minute, the Chiefs finally found rhythm in open play. A quick exchange through the hands sent Paul Brown-Bampoe flying over the try line. Slade’s successful conversion narrowed the deficit to just four points, setting up a nervy final ten minutes.

With the home crowd roaring them on, Exeter threw everything at Bath in the final stages. Wave after wave of attack tested the visitors’ defence, but Bath’s line held.

Turnovers at key breakdowns and smart territory control from Russell and his backline ensured that the Chiefs were denied any further scoring chances.