Wasps battle back to sting Bath despite losing four players to first-half injuries
Wasps claimed a remarkable Gallagher Premiership victory by beating play-off rivals Bath 27-23 despite losing four players injured. Flanker Thomas Young, full-back Lima Sopoaga, hooker Tommy Taylor and Taylor’s replacement Gabriel Oghre all departed during the first 34 minutes.
It meant the match going to uncontested scrums, so stretched were Wasps’ front-row resources, yet Bath could not take advantage and a 75th-minute penalty try after Bath collapsed a maul saw the visitors home.
It took Wasps back into fourth place and ended Bath’s unbeaten run since the competition restarted after lockdown.
Fly-half Jacob Umaga and prop Tom West scored tries for Wasps, while Umaga kicked two conversions and a penalty and full-back Liam Sopoaga slotted a penalty.
Wing Ruaridh McConnochie and substitute hooker Jack Walker claimed Bath’s touchdowns, and fly-half Rhys Priestland kicked 13 points.
Bath showed 12 changes from the side which won at Northampton on Wednesday as they targeted a best run of Premiership results since November.
Wasps, meanwhile, had six switches of personnel in their attempt to bounce back from a home defeat against Sale Sharks last time out.
And Bath made a flying start, going ahead after just two minutes after Wasps blundered when they tried to run possession from inside their own 22.
Young was down receiving treatment, and the visitors went for an audacious counter-attack, but a dropped pass gave McConnochie a chance, and he finished superbly, with Priestland’s conversion making it 7-0.
Priestland then kicked a seventh-minute penalty, leaving Wasps with plenty of early problems to ponder against arguably the Premiership’s form team since restart.
Young had been on the receiving end of a hefty collision and failed a subsequent head injury assessment, then Priestland and Sopoaga exchanged penalties as Bath maintained a 10-point advantage.
Wasps lost two more players to injury when Sopoaga and Taylor went off, but they enjoyed a spell of territorial dominance as Umaga looked to free dangerous wings Marcus Watson and Zach Kibirige.
The Saracens vs Leinster showdown is growing ever more mouth-watering by the day ?https://t.co/WYupVsg5jl
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) August 31, 2020
Taylor had barely left the field before Wasps conjured a quality try, with scrum-half Dan Robson’s agility turning Priestland inside out before delivering a scoring pass to Umaga.
Umaga converted his own try, and Wasps were back in contention, trailing by three points midway through the second quarter.
The injury curse would not leave Wasps, though, and Oghre went off just eight minutes after taking over from Taylor, meaning uncontested scrums as prop Simon McIntyre joined the action.
There was a lengthy delay while referee Wayne Barnes sought assurances from the Wasps staff about their hooking options, and without a recognised hooker, it resulted in Robson and McIntyre throwing into the line-out.
TRANSFER NEWS https://t.co/D9WTy2VTCx
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) August 31, 2020
Umaga then drew Wasps level on the stroke of half-time, underlining an admirable recovery in adversity.
Wasps remained in the hunt during a third quarter that saw a Priestland penalty put Bath ahead again, only for the visitors to respond brilliantly.
A flowing move ended with Bath defending desperately, but they could not keep West out from close range, and his try was converted by Umaga for a 20-16 lead.
Bath looked shell-shocked, needing to regroup before regaining the advantage through Walker’s touchdown and a Priestland conversion after Wasps’ forwards back-pedalled inside their own 22.
But then came the clinching penalty try, and Wasps could claim a famous victory.
Comments on RugbyPass
I bet he inspired those supporters just as much.
1 Go to commentsBen Smith Springboks living rent free in his head 😊😂
67 Go to commentsGood to hear he would like to play the game at the highest level, I hadn’t been to sure how much of a motivator that was before now. Sadly he’s probably chosen the rugby club to go to. Try not to worry about all the input about how you should play rugby Joey and just try to emulate what you do on the league field and have fun. You’ll limit your game too much (well not really because he’s a standard athlete like SBW and he’ll still have enough) if you’re trying to make sure you can recycle the ball back etc. On the other hard, you can totally just try and recycle by looking to offload any and everywhere if you’re going to ground 😋
1 Go to commentsThis just proves that theres always a stat and a metric to use to justify your abilities and your success. Ben did it last week by creating an imaginary competition and now you did the same to counter his argument and espouse a new yardstick for success. Why not just use the current one and lets say the Boks have won 4 world cups making them the most successful world cup team. Outside of the world cup the All Blacks are the most successful team winning countless rugby championships and dominating the rankings with high win percentages. Over the last 4 years statistically the Irish are the best having the highest win rate and also having positive records against every tier 1 side. The most successful Northern team in the game has been England with a world cup title and the most six nations titles in history. The AB’s are the most dominant team in history with the highest win rate and 3 world cups. Lets not try to reinvent the wheel. Just be honest about the actual stats and what each team has been good at doing and that will be enough to define their level of success.
19 Go to commentsHow is 7’s played there? I’m surprised 10 or 11 man rugby hasn’t taken off. 7 just doesn’t fit the 15s dynamics (rules n field etc) but these other versions do.
7 Go to commentsPick Swinton at your peril A liability just like JWH from the Roosters Skelton ??? went missing at RWC
14 Go to commentsLike tennis, who have a ranking system, and I believe rugby too, just measure over each period preceding a world cup event who was the longest number one and that would be it. In tennis the number one player frequently is not the grand slam winner. I love and adore the All Blacks since the days of Ian Kirkpatrick when I was a kid in SA. And still do because they are the masters of running rugby and are gentleman on and off the field - in general. And in my opinion they have been the majority of the time the best rugby team in the world.
19 Go to commentsHaving overseas possessions in 2024 is absurd. These Frenchies should have to give the New Caledonians their freedom.
21 Go to commentsBell injured his foot didn’t he? Bring Tupou in he’ll deliver when it counts. Agree mostly but I would switch in the Reds number 8 Harry Wilson for Swinton and move Rob Valentini to 6 instead. Wilson is a clever player who reads the play, you can’t outmuscle the AB’s and Springboks, if you have any chance it’s by playing clever. Same goes for Paisami, he’s a little guy who doesn’t really trouble the likes of De Allende and Jordie Barrett. I’d rather play Carter Gordon at 12 and put Michael Lynagh’s boy at 10. That way you get a BMT type goalkicker at 10 and a playmaker at 12. Anyways, just my two cents as a Bok supporter.
14 Go to commentsThanks Brett, love your articles which are alway pertinent. It’s a difficult topic trying to have a panel adjudicating consistently penalties for red card issues. Many of the mitigating reasons raised are judged subjectively, hence the different outcomes. How to take away subjective opinions?
9 Go to commentsYes Sir! Surprising, just like Fraser would also have escaped sanction if he was a few inches lower, even if it was by accident that he missed! Has there really been talk about those sanctions or is this just sensational journalism? I stopped reading, so might have missed any notations.
9 Go to commentsAI is only as good as the information put in, the nuances of the sport, what you see out the corner of the eye, how you sum up in a split second the situation, yes the AI is a tool but will not help win games, more likely contribute to a loss, Rugby Players are not robots, all AI can do if offer a solution not the solution. AI will effect many sports, help train better golfers etc.
45 Go to commentsIt couldn’t have been Ryan Crotty. He wasn’t selected in either World Cup side - they chose Money Bill instead. And Money Bill only cared about himself, and that manager he had, not the team.
28 Go to commentsYawn 🥱 nobody would give a hoot about this new trophy. End of the day we just have to beat Ireland and NZ this year then they can finally shut up 🤐
19 Go to commentsTalking bout Ryan Crotty? Heard Crotty say in a interview once that SBW doesen't care about the team . He went on to say that whenever they lost a big game, SBW would be happy as if nothing happened, according to him someone who cares would look down.. Personally I think Crotty is in the wrong, not for feeling gutted but for expecting others 2 be like him… I have been a bad loser forever as it matters so much to me but good on you SBW for being able to see the bigger picture….
28 Go to commentsThis sounds like a WWE idea so Americans can also get excited about rugby, RUGBY NEEDS A INTERNATIONAL CALENDER .. The rugby Championship and Six Nations can be held at same time, top 3 of six nations and top 3 of Rugby championship (6 nations should include Georgia AND another qualifying country while Fiji, Japan and Samoa/Tonga qualifier should make out 6 Southern teams).. Scrap June internationals and year end tours. Have a Elite top six Cup and the Bottom 6 in a secondary comp….
19 Go to commentsThe rugby championship would be even stronger with Fiji in it… I know it doesen’t fit the long term plans of NZ or Aus but you are robbing a whole nation of being able to see their best players play for Fiji…. Every second player in NZ and AUS teams has Fijian surnames… shame on you!!! World rugby won’t step in either as France and England has now also joined in…. I guess where money is involved it will always be the poor countries missing out….
90 Go to commentsNo surprise there. How hard can it be to pick a ball off the ground and chuck it to a mate? 😂
4 Go to commentsSometimes people just like a moan mate!
9 Go to commentsexcellent idea ! rugby needs this 💪
19 Go to comments