Bath secure home play-off by narrow margin

Bath Rugby 24-22 Leicester Tigers, The Rec

Bath secured a home Gallagher PREM play-off with a tense 24-22 win over Leicester Tigers in difficult weather conditions.

The match went right down to the final moments, with Leicester pushing hard for a late comeback. Bath eventually held on by the tightest of margins after a missed conversion in the closing minutes confirmed their victory and a home play-off place.

Leicester Make Strong Start

Leicester made the better start in the opening minutes and earned a penalty after Bath were caught offside. They kicked to the corner and built pressure through a powerful maul.

Former Bath centre Orlando Bailey then found a gap in the Bath defence and dived over for the opening try. James O’Connor added the conversion to give Leicester a 7-0 lead.

Bath responded soon after when Leicester were penalised for a deliberate knock-on.Thomas du Toit carried strongly and forced his way over to get Bath on the scoreboard, although Santi Carreras’ conversion attempt hit the posts.

Du Toit Double Puts Bath Ahead

Du Toit crossed for his second try, and this time Carreras added the conversion to put Bath 12-7 ahead. Leicester then won a penalty at the ruck and chose to take the points, cutting the gap to 12-10.

Bath hit back again before half-time. After working their way up the pitch and keeping pressure close to the line, Joe Cokanasiga gathered on the wing, beat defenders and crashed over to extend the lead to 17-10.

Leicester struck just before the break when scrum-half Jack van Poortvliet dived over. O’Connor converted, sending the sides into half-time level at 17-17.

Bath Hold On After Late Leicester Fightback

Bath regained the lead after Leicester were penalised for a high tackle near the line. The home forwards kept driving, and du Toit completed his hat-trick with another close-range finish. Carreras converted to make it 24-17.

The contest remained tense until the final minutes. With two minutes left, Bath were penalised near their own line and Cokanasiga was sent to the sin bin, giving Leicester one final chance.

Leicester used the advantage well and moved the ball from the forwards to the backs, allowing George Pearson to score their fourth try. Bath supporters waited nervously as Bailey stepped up for the conversion, but his kick struck the posts.

That miss confirmed Bath’s 24-22 win and secured their home play-off. Bath will now return to The Rec for Gallagher PREM play-off action against Exeter Chiefs on Saturday 13 June.

Team line up:

Bath: De Glanville; Cokanasiga, Lawrence, Ojomoh, Arundell; Carreras, Spencer (capt); Obano, Tuipulotu, Du Toit; Hill, Ewels, Bayliss, Underhill, Barbeary.

Reserves: Frost, Van Wyk, Sela, Molony, Richards, Carr-Smith, Redpath, Reid.

Leicester Tigers: Pearson; Radwan, Wand, Bailey, Hamer-Webb; O'Connor, Van Poortvliet; Smith, Blamire, Heyes; Henderson, Chessum (capt), Liebenberg, Reffell, Cracknell.

Reserves: Clare, Van der Flier, Hurd, Martin, Watson, Bemand, Kata, Perese.