Kyle Sincks Bath’s first half hopes by driving the Bears to a record result at the Rec

As victories go, Bristol’s fourth win on the trot against them from the down the road was as comprehensive a one as you are likely to see, even with the 15-point head start Bath were generously handed in the first quarter of the game. Given the dominance that the Bears have had over this fixture in the last two years it was perhaps only fair for the visitors to introduce some sort of handicapping system into the contest but unfortunately for Bath they had none of the qualities of a top-class stayer from which to take advantage.

Rather, their performance resembled that of a handy young gelding who goes off the bridle far too quickly, gets pulled up way before the finish and returns to the paddock to find his trainer flicking through the pages of a dog food magazine. Realistically, Bath offered very little apart from a tedious reliance on box kicking, a somewhat psychotic desire to smash Callum Sheedy at all costs and the wherewithal to feed off a couple of early scraps that were less handed to them on a plate and more served a la carte by a waiter dressed in a full tuxedo and auditioning for a permanent job at the Manoir des Quatres Saisons. Ultimately, the final score didn’t lie and on another more clinical day the hosts could well having been looking down the barrel of a 50-point deficit way before Bristol elected to bring on the spare bears to finish the job.

However, it was a bonkers start to the game as the visitors came out of the blocks so fast that they appeared to both literally and metaphorically trip themselves up by conceding two of the world’s greatest ‘against the run of play’ tries ever seen and you felt that if it continued then it wouldn’t be long before Norris McWhirter would be rising from the dead to induct them into the Guinness Book of World Records for the number of puzzled looks simultaneously appearing on human faces ever seen.

At that point Bath had been less on the ropes and more hanging off them with their budgie smugglers round their necks such had been the ferocity of Bristol’s early forays into enemy territory. However, one dropped ball and a fortuitous hack through later and they had their first try. Even the silence in the empty Rec was dumbstruck and when that was followed soon after by a simple interception, the previously mute Bath suddenly found their voices whilst Bristol appeared to get a severe case of the yips not seen since Ernie Ells six putted at Augusta in 2016.

However, unlike the Big Easy the Bears didn’t find it too hard to get back into the game and after brushing themselves off they soon started to reassert control thanks to a combination of forward grunt, all-court counter rucking and a tapestry of backline moves, which finally rewarded them a rolling maul try courtesy of a rejuvenated and slightly leaner Nathan Hughes, who bundled over the whitewash to get the Bears party started. At that point you felt that they had got their grip back on the game and despite trailing at the break it ‘definately’ felt that Bath would start to buckle if further pressure was to be applied.

The tale of the second half was one where what little confidence Bath had left began draining down the plug hole as Bristol flexed their forward muscles and stretched their backline patterns. Poor old Juan Shoeman was being given such a torrid time by a pumped Kyle Sinckler that it must have been a blessed relief for him to have been carded after the penalty try but after he trudged off, the League’s powerplay specialists had their paws in the honeypot and nothing was going to stop them licking it dry.

Bristol’s interplay and crash ball offloading was a delight to behold. There was one particular passage of play between Radrada, Luatua, Vui and Hughes that was pure South Pacific and only a one-eyed cockney, or Bath fan, would have begrudged the harmonious way they shifted the oval between themselves.

From that moment on it was only really a case of by how many the Bears would win, with Max Malins delivering a brace of tries and over 100 metres gained, albeit a large proportion of them on his tummy.

His first try which took them into the lead was brutal in its simplicity. A forward moving scrum just inside Bath’s 22 allowed the first receiver to take the ball at pace and then it was nothing more revolutionary than straighten, draw the man, pass and repeat and at 21-15 it pretty much became one way traffic. The Bath players must have felt that they were riding a moped the wrong way round Silverstone at the height of the British Grand Prix such was the flow of possession, but unfortunately for them there was no safety car to bail them out. When Preistland managed to kick a 22 drop out into touch on the full, to gift Bristol another scrum, the collective hanging of heads in the Bath pack told you everything you needed to know about their rapidly disintegrating mindset. The writing wasn’t just on the wall, it was being sprayed all over the floor as well.

After their torrid lineout failure against Montpelier, Bath were now facing a scrum disaster of similar proportions and with their set piece being investigated by the Advertising Standards Authority and a trip to Sale next up on the fixture list, you almost felt sorry for them.

Almost.

But if you don’t sort out the basic rugby foundations of catching, pushing and tackling then your game plan is ultimately built on sand. Whereas Bristol rectified their first half issues, Bath kept on trying to do the same thing that wasn’t working and eventually sunk without trace.

When the bonus point finally arrived via King Charles, Bristol were in cruise control and rapidly ascending the mountain as Bath slipped back to base camp. A consolation try from Anthony Watson, who made Ioan Lloyd look, just for once, that he really is only 19 years old, was at least one bright moment for them but when Ben Spencer and Will Muir were substituted and wandered off with facial expressions of which even hang dogs would be ashamed, it was pretty much game, set and match although as well as eventually scoring six tries Bristol also managed to add a couple top class disallowed ones to their bulging showreel.

The best was the one on 45 minutes when Nathan Hughes collected a cross kick from Callum Sheedy after a passage of play that was so good, contained so many carries, offloads and line breaks and was so nourishing to the rugby soul that you felt that just for once BT Sport could have turned all French TV producer-like and declared that there was no angle available to see any possible knock on from the unfortunate Luke Monahan thereby preserving the sanctity of Bristol’s desire to bring joy and exultation to the world in union.

But no. It wasn’t to be. Hughes looked disappointed and the Wizard of Moz checked his wand and jogged back to his mark.

Overall, it was a comfortable victory for the Bears but the early scare was useful in forcing the team to problem-solve on the hoof. If they are to win their first domestic title, then figuring out how to shift the momentum back their way in a tight game will be key and the more practice they get at it, the better. With fans finally returning for the next fixture against an improving Gloucester and one of English rugby’s more unpalatable fixtures in an away trip to the AJ Bell to come, challenges still await but the summit of glory is getting ever nearer.

You can hear more analysis if this game and a preview of the next by clicking here and listening to the latest episode of Bears Beyond The Gate, Bristol rugby’s best (and only) podcast made by fans for fans!