By Ian Todd
October 17 2010

Bristol fought off a gallant second half comeback from Nottingham, clawing their way back in front with a last-gasp bonus-point try in the dying seconds off an exciting contest

Bristol started brightly with captain Iain Grieve racing on to a lax Nottingham kick.  Jack Adams then advanced down the right wing and Nottingham gave away a penalty that Nicky Little sent over for a very early 3 - 0 lead.  Nottingham tried to hit back quickly and a free-kick set up a dangerous platform for them.   The ball was worked left as they probed the Bristol defence.  Back right came the ball and Johnston had a sniff of an opening but Junior Fatialofa hauled him down.  Nottingham continued to press but failure to engage at an attacking scrum let the hosts off the hook. 

Excellent tactical kicking from Little pushed Nottingham back and allowed Bristol to launch a dangerous attack with good handling only marred by a knock-on at the last.  Another move was called back for crossing with the defensive line seemingly breached.  The Nottingham scrum-half Davies put his team in trouble by knocking-on a tapped penalty, promptly followed by a penalty to Bristol that allowed Little to move Bristol up to the five-metre line.  The drive went in from the lineout and it was inexorable.  The referee was well positioned to see Ross Johnston, starting after a long lay-off, touch down for a converted try and a 10 – 0 lead. 

Bristol’s cause was helped when a poor Nottingham kick bounced into touch in-goal to take play right back into the visitors half.  A quick break from James Merriman caught the defence napping.  Support in the form of Mako Vunipola was swift to arrive and the ball was rapidly swung out to the right.  Adams took the difficult pass well and he was over in the corner for an unconverted try. 

Bristol were guilty of complacency when a Nottingham penalty kick took them well into the Bristol 22 and the defence at the lineout was very weak and the hooker, Youngs went over the line virtually untouched for an unconverted try but with the score at 15 – 5. 

Another piece of slack play allowed Nottingham to remain on the front foot but a crunching tackle brought them to a sudden halt.  The tackling continued to be fierce but a smart kick from  Nottingham’s Arliss eased the visiting team forward.  Although they were penalised at the lineout, Little failed to make a long touch and Ben Johnston raced forward with the ball. Back to the right with  Cobden making ground before the ball went down the line as Bristol come up offside.  Arlidge was spot on with his penalty kick to narrow the gap to 15 – 8. 

Bristol strove to get going again and Grieve, Vunipola and Fatialofa were all prominent but the final pass just would not go to hand.  Adams made a lancing break down his wing to get Bristol moving and the ball went from side to side as Bristol probed for a weak point in the defence.  Finally the pack drove forward, supporting the ball-carrier well.  Vunipola burst clear just inside the five-metre line.  He still had work to do but had the strength to hammer over the line with defenders clinging vainly to him.  Little was on-target with the tricky conversion and Bristol lead 22 – 8 at half-time. 

Bristol failed to replicate the performance of the first half in the second.  The kick-off was allowed to bounce around in front of the posts and, under pressure, the ball was scuffed into touch inside the 22.  Nottingham remained patient and were rewarded with a penalty that temporary replacement Marshall kicked over for 22 – 11.  Merriman took play back to the visitors with a typical run.  Nottingham were penalised at the breakdown but Little’s ambitious effort drifted wide of the posts.  Nottingham took advantage of Bristol errors to break clear down the left wing.  The hint of a forward pass was not taken by the officials and Shaw crashed through some inadequate tackling to score a converted try that took Nottingham right back into contention at 22 – 18. 

Bristol looked rattled and a stolen lineout saw Nottingham once again on the attack, with their pack driving powerfully.  A five-metre scrum was barely held out with the Bristol defence just hanging on.  Nottingham kept the Bristol line under pressure and Arlidge almost cut his way through before centre Streather slithered over out left, injuring himself in the process.  The try was well converted and Nottingham were in the lead for the first time in the game. 

A short-lived lead, when, practically from the restart, Little equalized with an excellent penalty kick.  Bristol tried to wrest back control of the game, but simple errors had crept into their game and the lineout had started to struggle.  From a poor lineout Nottingham were handed an opportunity to attack and needed no second invitation.  They swept forward and Bristol were penalised for going round the wrong side.  The unerring kick nudged the visiting team back in front at 25 – 28. 

With time running out Bristol toiled away but still the self-inflicted problems meant that they could make no real headway.  A break for injury, fortunately not serious, allowed Bristol a time to regroup.  Replacement Jamie Miller got Bristol moving with a good run.  Nottingham’s clearance kick simply allowed George Watkins to take-off in a scything run that brought the crowd alive.  Vunipola took the ball on, forcing the defence back.  Nottingham gave away a penalty as they strove to contain the Bristol impetus.  Little went for the corner but the ball was knocked on as the forwards tried to drive over.  The Nottingham scrum seemed under pressure but the ball was still cleared away from the danger zone.  Desperate, Bristol continued to attack with first Adams, then Sean Marsden taking play on.  Fatialofa drew the defence and his pass was hauled out of the air by the sprinting Grieve who raced in unopposed, to the jubilation of the Bristol supporters.  From out left, Little’s kick was precision itself and Bristol led 32 – 28 with just seconds left on the clock.  There was no way back for the visiting team and Bristol chalked up a stirring bonus-point win.