Bath's struggle continues in Champions Cup as they succumb to 17-34 defeat to Clermont

Bath Rugby 17-34 Clermont Auvergne, Recreation Ground
Scorecard

Clermont Auvergne came up with a dominating second half as they defeated Bath Rugby 17-34 in the third round of the Heineken Champions Cup at Recreation Ground.

This is Bath's third defeat from as many games as they languish at the bottom of Pool 3 while Clermont are at the top of the table with 11 points.

Rhys Priestland gave a head start to Bath with a 13th minute converted try but Clermont went on to level the scores before half-hour mark with a touchdown from George Moala that was improved by Morgan Parra as the teams finished the first half with a 7-7 scoreline.

The start of the second half saw Laidlaw and Priestland trading tries before the Scotland international put the visitors into a three-point lead with a 53rd minute penalty goal.

The game entered the final quarter with all three possibilities but it was the French side that seized when it mattered the most with tries from Samuel Ezeala (66' and 73') and Alexandre Lapandry (68').

Laidlaw kicked all the three conversions that took Clermont's lead to 10-34 before Jonathan Joseph scored a consolation try to help Bath reduce their losing margin.