Sharks left the Rec empty-handed after a hard-fought contest in Round 5 of the PREM Rugby Cup. A youthful Sharks 23 displayed grit and determination, challenging Bath throughout, even if the scoreline didn’t reflect their effort.
Bath set the tone early, reclaiming possession from their own kickoff and trapping the Sharks deep inside their 22. After several sustained attacking phases, Dan Frost spotted a gap in the defence and powered over for the opening try. Tom de Glanville was unable to add the extras.
Sharks responded well, winning a scrum penalty in midfield after a Bath handling error from the restart. This allowed Ollie Davies to kick deep into the Bath 22, giving Sharks an excellent attacking platform. After several phases of carrying hard at the line, Bath did well to absorb the pressure and force a knock-on.
From the resulting scrum, Bath looked to clear their lines, but Alex Wills’s charge-down appeared to have given Sharks their first points as he dived on the loose ball. However, referee Joe James ruled no try, leaving Sharks with another strong opportunity from a five-metre scrum.
Sale, back in possession, were unable to capitalise inside the 22 and just minutes later Bath turned over possession and struck from deep, launching an attack from their own 22. A well-executed kick chase upfield allowed their backs to link up smoothly, sending Tom de Glanville diving over for Bath’s second try in 25 minutes.
Around the 30-minute mark, with heavy rain falling, both teams were battling for territory in midfield. Sharks attempted to break into the Bath half, but Dan Frost won a jackal turnover, allowing Cam Redpath to kick to the corner and pin the Sharks back inside their 22. Sharks skipper Tom Burrow disrupted the lineout, forcing Bath to juggle the ball, but they managed to keep it alive and offload to young back-rower Arthur Green, who crashed over for Bath’s third try just before halftime. Tom de Glanville couldn’t add the extras, leaving Bath leading 15–0 going into the break.
Ollie Davies restarted the second half, and the Sharks quickly pinned Bath inside their 22. Bath’s discipline was wobbling, giving Sharks several close-range chances, but they couldn’t break through. They looked certain to score, but Miles Reid got under the ball and Bath cleared with a goal-line dropout.
At 60 minutes, Bath brought on van Vyk, Dunn, Sela, Roux, Molony, Staddon, Hill, and Tuipulotu. Despite this, Sharks dominated possession and kept Bath under pressure but couldn’t break through. With neither side able to mount an attack, Tom de Glanville and Alex Wills traded kicks in the downpour, before Wills found touch just short of halfway.
Sharks defended well again and forced Bath to kick. Neil le Roux sends up a high ball for Will Butt, who won the chase to score Bath’s fourth and final try at the 70-minute mark. De Glanville again missed the conversion.
Full time: Bath take the win, but it was valuable learning experience for this young Sharks side. Attention now turns back to the Gallagher Prem, with Exeter Chiefs heading North next Friday night!
