Bath top Pool 2 with dominant win over Edinburgh

Bath 63-10 Edinburgh, The Rec

Bath Rugby delivered a statement performance under the lights at The Rec, overpowering Edinburgh Rugby to finish top of Pool 2 in the Investec Champions Cup and secure a home Round of 16 tie.

Edinburgh opened the scoring early through a Ross Thompson penalty, but the hosts quickly seized control. Bath’s forwards laid the platform as Thomas du Toit crossed for the opening try, before sustained pressure inside the 22 resulted in a penalty try making it 14-3.

Moments later, Beno Obano continued his impressive scoring run by powering over for his third try in as many weeks to take the score to 21-3.

Edinburgh briefly reduced the deficit when Piers O’Conor finished well, but Bath had the final say in the first half. With the clock in the red, Tom Dunn completed a front-row full house by crashing over, sending Bath into the break with a commanding 28-10 lead.

Edinburgh attempted to mount a response after the restart, but Bath’s discipline and defensive organisation limited the visitors to just three penalties in the second half and denied them any further points.

Bath’s backs then took centre stage. Joe Cokanasiga burst through the defence to score under the posts, with Finn Russell converting. Soon after, Ben Spencer added another after strong work out wide, stretching the lead to 42-10.

As replacements were introduced, Bath continued to exploit space. Henry Arundell showcased his pace and footwork to score on 67 minutes, before Cokanasiga completed his brace shortly after. Max Ojomoh rounded off a comprehensive team performance late on, with Russell remaining flawless from the tee.

The emphatic victory secures Bath a home Round of 16 fixture, their first Champions Cup home knockout match since 2002.

Team line up:

Bath: De Glanville; Cokanasiga, Ojomoh, Lawrence, Arundell; Russell, Spencer (capt); Obano, Dunn, Du Toit, Roux, Molony, Pepper, Underhill, Barbeary.

Reserves: Frost, Van Wyk, Griffin, Hill, Reid, Carr-Smith, Carreras, Redpath

Edinburgh: Paterson; Graham, O'Conor, Lang, Satala; Thompson, Vellacott (capt); Whitcombe, Ashman, Blyth-Lafferty, Hunter-Hill, Young, Dodd, Douglas, Muncaster.

Reserves: Morris, Jones, Hill, McVie, Boyle, Shiel, Healy, Brown.