Bath hammer Munster 40-14 in Champions Cup opener

Bath Rugby 40-14 Munster, The Recreation Ground

Bath Rugby delivered a commanding performance against Munster Rugby at The Recreation Ground, cruising to a 40-14 win bonus-point victory in their 2025/26 Champions Cup opener.

The hosts took control early and never looked back, combining strong set-piece play, sharp finishing and discipline to overwhelm a troubled Munster side.

Bath struck quickly. Within six minutes they were awarded a penalty try — and Munster captain Tadhg Beirne was shown a yellow card — giving Bath a 7-0 start. Soon after, Miles Reid powered over from close range, converted by Finn Russell making it 14-0.

Bath continued to pile on pressure, and Henry Arundell took advantage of a clever kick into space to dot down their third try, with Russell converting to make it 21-0. Before 20 minutes were up, Tom Dunn crashed over from close range to further extend the lead to 28-0 in the opening quarter.

Munster did get on the board by the 22nd minute through a score from Edwin Edogbo after sustained pressure, cutting the deficit to 28-7 before Will Stuart was sin-binned.

As the half time was nearing, Beno Obano and Craig Casey exchanged tries as Bath completed the opening half with a 35-14 lead.

The second half saw Bath remain in control despite a period of pressure from the visitors. As the match neared its end, they added a fifth try through Ted Hill to complete a 26-point victory.

Team line up:

Bath: De Glanville; Cokanasiga, Ojomoh, Redpath, Arundell; Russell, Spencer; Obano, Dunn, Stuart, Roux, Ewels, Bayliss, Pepper, Reid.

Reserves: Tuipulotu, Van Wyk, Du Toit, Molony, Hill, Carr-Smith, Carreras, Underhill.

Munster: Daly; Kilgallen, Farrell, Kelly, Abrahams; Hanrahan, Casey; Milne, Barron, Ryan, Edogbo, Ahern, Beirne, Hodnett, Coombes.

Reserves: Barron, Loughman, Ala'alatoa, Wycherley, Quinn, Coughlan, Nankivell, Kendellen.