The holiday season has yielded some topsy-turvy results and there was another beside the rain-lashed Avon yesterday. Less than a week ago Wasps were thumping Gloucester and Bath were losing limply to Bristol. This morning, in contrast, Bath have located the ultimate hangover cure while Wasps will be wondering precisely what hit them.
Given that his side won the reverse fixture 47-18 less than two months ago and seemed to have grasped control of this game in the third quarter, it was no wonder the Wasps coach Shaun Edwards looked so short of new year bonhomie. He described the visitors' defensive effort on the left side of the field as "disgraceful" and his director of rugby, Ian McGeechan, also lamented the tactical failings which allowed Bath to escape a watery grave.
The home side made their own luck to a certain extent and in the flanker James Scaysbrook possessed a player with sufficient brio to rise above conditions which were never less than horrible. It was Scaysbrook's clean break off a ruck which established the position for Joe Maddock's crucial second try after 70 minutes and he was also heavily involved in the build-up to the winger's first score, which helped Bath to build a 13-0 lead inside 16 minutes.
The watching England head coach, Brian Ashton, will have taken due note, as well as reflecting on the way Wasps' forwards fought their way back into contention only to squander their hard work when it mattered. The Kiwi hooker Joe Ward and the Irish flanker Johnny O'Connor were particularly industrious as the Bath scrum were forced into conceding a 48th minute penalty try which helped give Wasps a 16-13 advantage.
Tom Palmer showed up well opposite Danny Grewcock but, fatally, Wasps then relaxed their stranglehold. "We got into a winning position and blew it tactically," said McGeechan. "We stopped doing what we'd been doing for 20 minutes, which was take them on up front. We'd got them but we opened the game up and played into their hands."
It hardly made it easier to hear Bath's Steve Meehan suggest his side's improvement was largely down to their desire to match opponents they regard as among the toughest in the league. Bath still have their limitations but the fly-half Chris Malone kept his cool and Maddock, nicknamed Mad Dog, showed once again he is an improving player. He took both his tries well and a chastened Tom Voyce had been replaced by the time Shaun Berne collected Nick Walshe's well-timed pass in the closing minutes and slithered over.
It also helped them when, after a Berne drop-goal had been charged down, Dan Cipriani fumbled with the Bath defence fully stretched. There was also a pivotal penalty award when Ward was adjudged to have held on too long, but Bath will regard this as a potential springboard to better times, with Steve Borthwick and Michael Lipman due back soon following long-term injuries.
Defeat would have had serious relegation implications, with Worcester winning at Northampton, although Bath's long-suffering fans were more immediately concerned with jumping into a hot shower. If conditions were bad for the players and replacements it was impossible not to feel sorry for spectators stuck in the open stands. Days like yesterday are enough to test anyone's new year's resolution and highlight the desperate need to update the Rec's antiquated facilities. A sliding roof would be a start.
Bath Barkley; Maddock, Walker, Fuimaono-Sapolu, Cheeseman (Walshe, 36); Malone (Berne, 75), Williams; Barnes, Mears (Dixon,79), Sigley (Ovens, 60), Fidler (Beattie, 53), Grewcock, Short, Scaysbrook (Delve, 76), Feau'nati (capt).
Tries Maddock 2, Berne. Cons Malone 2, Barkley. Pens Malone 3.
Wasps Lewsey; Sackey, Hoadley, Waldouck, Voyce (Cipriani, 72); Walder, Amor (Reddan, 60); Payne, Ward, Bracken (Adams, 73), Purdy, Palmer, Worsley (Leo, 63), O'Connor (Haskell, 78), Dallaglio (capt; Hart, 63).
Try penalty Con Walder Pens Walder 4
Referee R Maybank (Kent). Attendance 10,600.
