Bath send message to Premiership with statement win over champions

Bath turned the tables on Gallagher Premiership champions Northampton as they opened their league campaign with a 38-16 victory at the Recreation Ground.

Three months after losing narrowly to Saints in the final, Johann van Graan’s team produced an impressive display on opening night.

And they triumphed in bonus-point fashion as tries from wing Joe Cokanasiga, flanker Ted Hill, scrum-half Ben Spencer, centre Ollie Lawrence and replacement Jaco Coetzee saw them home.

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Fly-half Finn Russell kicked five conversions and a penalty, while Northampton could have few complaints about the outcome.

Flanker Josh Kemeny touched down on his Premiership debut for Saints, while Fin Smith booted a conversion and three penalties, yet they never seriously threatened to leave the west country with maximum points.

Northampton missed the sniping presence of injured England scrum-half Alex Mitchell and, although Smith provided moments of flair and creativity, Bath always enjoyed an element of control.

England head coach Steve Borthwick looked on as Bath dominated initial territory and possession – Saints did not help themselves by conceding three quickfire penalties – before taking a sixth-minute lead.

The Bath forwards drove a lineout deep into Northampton’s 22, then quickly recycled ball enabled an overlap to be worked and Cokanasiga finished impressively.

Russell converted from the touchline, but his opposite number Smith drifted a short-range penalty chance wide before Russell failed to find the target from 35 metres.

Northampton hit back in style midway through the first half, carving Bath’s defence open through some slick handling at pace.

Centre Fraser Dingwall was the architect, sending captain George Furbank through a gap 25 metres out, and Kemeny applied the finish on his Saints debut.

Smith converted, but Saints were then stunned by a spectacular Bath score from distance.

Centre Will Butt made an outstanding break, found Spencer in support and his superbly-timed pass allowed Hill an unopposed run to the line, with Russell’s conversion making it 14-7.

Smith kicked a penalty, but Bath struck again five minutes before the interval, charging forward from a lineout, and Spencer exploited some weak Northampton defensive work to claim his team’s third touchdown, again converted by Russell.

Northampton needed to make inroads after the break and they went close just eight minutes in, but wing James Ramm saw possession squirm away from his grasp as he tried to collect Smith’s cross-kick.

Smith cut the gap through a 54th-minute penalty and landed a three-pointer shortly afterwards to set up an intriguing final quarter.

Bath then reasserted themselves in the game, with debutant flanker Guy Pepper making a crunching tackle on Furbank, who spilled possession and Lawrence broke clear to score.

Russell landed a fourth successful conversion and Saints again had it all to do, trailing by 12 points.

A Russell penalty took Bath further in front, with his long-range effort killing off any chance of a late Saints revival, and Kemeny collected a late yellow card.

There was still time for Bath to add further gloss after Kemeny’s departure, with powerful close-range work by the pack rewarded when Coetzee touched down to complete a convincing evening.