Gloucester stormed to their first Prem win over Bath at Kingsholm since April 2022, beating their oldest rivals 23-5 on the back of an immense defensive display. The Cherry and Whites were down to 13 men for a period of the first half but led 9-5 at half-time, having repelled wave after wave of Bath pressure on their tryline.
George Barton kicked three successive penalties to put the hosts 9-0 up before Kepu Tuipulotu pulled a try back just before the break from a driving maul. Freddie Thomas scored under the posts midway through the second half, and Max Llewellyn rolled over with two minutes to go to seal a famous victory that reaffirms Gloucester's status as league leaders.
This was Gloucester's first win over their oldest rivals since a 64-0 thrashing more than four and a half years earlier. After an impressive draw against holders Bordeaux in the Champions Cup seven days earlier, head coach George Skivington said this was the Cherry and Whites' biggest game of the season. Their performance showed it is no fluke that they lead the Prem at this early stage, even with captain Dewi Lake and centre Seb Atkinson absent through injury.
For Bath, it is a third successive defeat in all competitions, compounded by injuries to full-back Santiago Carreras and flanker Guy Pepper. Bath enjoyed 97% possession at one point during a 10-minute spell in the first half, but three tries were ruled out by the TMO and Gloucester's defence held firm. Bath scored only once all night.
Source: BBC Sport · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing