Bath player ratings vs Newcastle Red Bulls | Gallagher PREM 2025-26

Bath player ratings: Bath go into the Christmas break top of the table for the third year in a row after a 50-14 win over basement side Newcastle Red Bulls.

A brace from hooker Dan Frost and tries from fellow front-rowers, Francois van Wyk and Archie Griffin, helped Bath into a 19-14 half-time lead after Newcastle had struck first through Ollie Leatherbarrow.

Bath’s backs took over in the second half with Will Butt, Tom de Glanville and Ben Spencer all crossing before Ted Hill piled over from close range at the death.

15. Tom de Glanville – 6
A couple of moments of unusual indecision and was pick-pocketed in the air a couple of times, but a masterful high ball take on the stroke of half-time was a reminder of his usual solidity at the back and he did everything that was asked of him after that. Hardly seen as an attacking force until hanging out wide to finish off a stunning mispass from Ben Spencer.

14. Joe Cokanasiga – 6
Having been exposed defensively on Bath’s last visit to Kingston Park, Cokanasiga showed his improvement in this area with a couple of big hits. Frustratingly quiet with ball in hand, though, until Bath broke free in the final 15 minutes and his offload led to Ben Spencer’s ttry.

13. Chris Harris – 5.5
A rather subdued return to the North East for the former Newcastle man. Some of his passing left a lot to be desired and the ex-Scotland international didn’t make many metres or tackles, either, but he kept going and won a good turnover at the end.

12. Will Butt – 6
A willing ball carrier as always but spilled a pass he really should have taken and didn’t really press forward his claims for more regular first-team rugby.

11. Louie Hennessey – 5
Playing out of position on the wing, and it showed at times. Tried to get involved, but it never quite clicked for the young Welshman, who conceded three needless penalties in the first half alone.

10. Santi Carreras – 7
The man who looks a million dollars replaced the man who earns a million pounds with no drop-off in value. One moment of dithering at the back and a few missed conversions aside, the Argentinian showed why Bath were delighted to prise him away from Gloucester in the summer. Composed on the ball and picked his passes well, Carreras also cleared his lines effectively whenever the need arose, with some booming touchfinders.

9. Tom Carr-Smith – 5
Box kicks were generally sound enough but giving away 10 metres for dissent will have infuriated Johann van Graan. Still some way off getting anywhere near Ben Spencer’s level of play.

1. Francois van Wyk – 7
Rock solid at the scrum and had a couple of rumbles forward, as well as crossing for a try from a metre out. He even put the ball through the laces to punt the ball into touch and bring the first half to a close.

2. Dan Frost – 7.5
A real curate’s egg of a first-half performance. The former Exeter man bagged a brace of tries – one from the conventional back of a maul route and the other a fine solo burst – but he also bought a dummy runner’s line, which created the hole that led to Newcastle’s first try, as well as a dropping a pass which ruined a promising attack. One of Bath’s biggest disrupters at ruck time and only missed a couple of throws.

3. Archie Griffin – 7
Made life tricky for Adam Brocklebank in the scrum and finished his try really well, bumping off two defenders before crashing over.

4. Ewan Richards – 6
With a lack of broken-field play in the first half, Richards struggled to get into the game with ball in hand. But the athletic lock made up for lost time after the break with a brilliant burst of acceleration seeing him race downfield. Although he was stopped inches short himself, Bath scored soon after.

5. Ross Molony – 7
A good source of lineout ball for Bath and brilliantly plucked the ball out of the dark Newcastle sky from one restart. Seemed to put himself about more than in recent matches.

6. Josh Bayliss – 6
Bayliss used his trademark footwork before taking the ball into contact but got little change out of the Red Bulls’ defence and also took the wrong option near the end of the first half when he single-handedly broke from the base of a ruck and was penalised after getting isolated. Not the standout performance he’d have hoped for in his 100th PREM game.

7. Ethan Staddon – 6
After a quiet first 40 as a link player, Staddon got Bath going in the second half when he peeled away off the back of a maul in Newcastle’s 22 to set the platform for the visitors’ fourth try. Didn’t hit the heights he achieved against Leicester earlier in the season.

8. Miles Reid (cpt.) – 7
Some good, some bad from Bath’s captain for the day who always gives 100%. Produced a couple of timely turnovers, one under the shadow of Bath’s posts, and made plenty of telling carries. Will be disappointed by the three penalties he gave away.

Replacements: 8
It didn’t seem fair when Bath introduced their ‘Bomb Squad’ en masse with 55 minutes gone when they were 33-14 ahead on the scoreboard. Ben Spencer capped a brilliant cameo with a try, while Sam Underhill and Tom Dunn went on the rampage with some telling carries.