Those in any doubt about what this first meeting between two near-neighbours meant, and how tight a contest it was, had only to observe the Bath captain Jonathan Humphreys after he was substituted in the 48th minute. The hooker did not go in and get changed but prowled around the touchline, a towel over his shoulders, unable to sit down, with a look of anguish on his face as he watched his side throw away chance after chance.
A "must-win" this might have been for Bath but for the final quarter it looked like a "should-lose" as they persistently shot themselves in the foot with a lack of discipline, continual niggling and poor ball retention. In the end they were saved by their fly-half Olly Barkley's consistency on his return after an ankle strain. The England No10 kicked 16 points, including a neat drop-goal and set up Mike Tindall's 20th-minute try with a neat grubber kick, but otherwise Bath offered little apart from an interception try for Brendon Daniel.
"We weren't as disjointed as we have been" was the kindest comment Bath's head coach John Connolly could come up with and other problems await this week: an examination of Tindall's injured shoulder and the disciplinary hearing for Steve Borthwick.
Worcester kept themselves in the game with an obduracy that promises, if not necessarily a bright future, at least an interesting few months. They have run Saracens and Bath close, although Connolly does not believe they are significantly stronger than Rotherham, an unmentionable here along with the other "R", relegation.
"They are about the same. We played Rotherham early in the piece at the Rec and there was only six points in it after the first half. It's going to be a hard year for them as injuries start to hit.
"I wouldn't say our season is down the toilet on the basis of one result," said Worcester's director of rugby John Brain, whose fly-half Tommy Hayes limped off in the final minutes after a haul of 17 points. "There are a lot of games to go and, with 13 new players, we are likely to be better at the end of the season."
Worcester: Delport; O'Leary, Hayes, Trueman (Hinshelwood, 24min), Lombard; Brown (Roke, 57), Cole (Stuart-Smith, 74); Windo, Daly (Van Niekerk, 67), Fortey, Collier, Gillies, Greeff, Sanderson (capt), Macleod-Henderson (Hickey, 55).
Try: Lombard. Con: Hayes. Pens: Hayes 5.
Bath: Maddock; Crockett, Fleck, Tindall (Davey, 65), Daniel; Barkley, Wood; Barnes (Stevens, 31), Humphreys (capt; Mears, 48), Bell, Borthwick, Grewcock, Beattie, Lipman, Feaunati.
Tries: Daniel, Tindall. Cons: Barkley 2. Pens: Barkley 3 . Drop-goal: Barkley.
Sin-bin: Tindall, 40.
Referee: D Pearson (Northumberland). Attendance: 8,200.
