By Glen Leat
May 8 2004

Bath Rugby capped a monumental turnaround this season with a stunning 41-7 victory over Glawster to secure top spot on the 2003/04 League Table and a place in the Premiership Final at Twickenham. Brilliant, quite brilliant and a big thank you from all supporters to the players and coaching staff.

I've spent my whole adult life not believing Santa visits me at Christmas but now I'm not so sure given the fairy-tale season we've just experienced as supporters of Bath Rugby. This time last year our club was on a life support machine with a very poor prognosis: not only was a merger with Bristol imminent but we were an Elvis try away from forsaking our coveted spot in the Premier League of English rugby. Then over the summer period a man with the unlikely nickname of "Knuckles" arrives and, together with, Big Jack and Michael Foley goes about recruiting a new team and turning it in to a unit capable of topping the table at the end of the season. If that isn't a magical story then I'm Hans Christian Andersen.

Glawster came to Bath today expecting to break their League duck. Before the game the Glaws coaching staff commented that they would "run Bath all over the pitch" and take the game, and the comments reported on the BBC website show just how unexpected this result was for them. Nigel Melville said, "There is no doubt we were up for it, so it can only be a mental issue and we have got to look at that. The team didn't deliver, the players played a level below where they should be, and that is disappointing."

Bath themselves had a huge mental barrier to overcome after their dismal display in the second half at Quins last week whereas Glawster should have been on the up after beating Wasps. Perhaps what Melville and (the arch villain) Dean Ryan hadn't considered was the Humphreys factor. Ryan was giving referee Lander and one of his Touch Judges a bit of gip on the touch-line as his frustration grew and the suntanned one had to tell him to shut up more than once. Hey Ryan, it wasn't Landers fault that your team didn't turn up today so learn to keep your gob shut, you do your great club a disservice with this attitude.

Danny Grewcock showed what a great bloke he is this week when he handed the captaincy over to the most natural leader we have at Bath, Jonathan Humphreys, and what a difference the Welshman makes. Humphreys leads from the front in commitment and ferocity and I can't believe any player would not want to play beyond their best with this man in charge. You would think JH is a born and bred Bathonian, he is certainly not a "rugby mercenary" and I would like to take this opportunity to raise a glass of the red stuff (I'm currently supping) just to say, "Jonathan Humphreys, thank you. You have been a revelation in the blue, black and white and deserve a bit of silverware for your efforts." By the way, if any of you are striving or any omens to help us win the Championship, don't forget the last time we won anything (European Cup) we had another Welsh legend in our side, Mr Iuean Evans!

And so to the game...

The first half was mainly dominated by Bath with Chris Malone kicking four penalties to give the home side a 12-0 half-time lead. Malone's kicks were not simple tap-overs and his reliability in this area has come on leaps and bounds and Olly Barkley will struggle to wrest the starting position away from the young Aussie at Twickenham . But this half wasn't just about Malone's penalties, he also kicked brilliantly to touch, keeping Glawster on the back foot and he tried a 50 yard drop at goal and only just missed (knowing he already had a penalty attempt to fall back on). But despite territorial dominance Bath couldn't break through a strong Glaws defence and it seemed as though this would be another tight game with the home side relying on a bit of boot to grab the win. Little did we know what was in store in the second half. 

The second half started ominously for Bath with missed kicks and catches bringing back memories of The Stoop and for a short period Glawster looked as though they were going to drag themselves back in to the game, however Henry Paul missed a straightforward penalty (as he had in the first half) and wing Marcel Garvey was denied a try in the corner by a brilliant Matt Perry tackle. I thought Garvey looked sharp whenever he had the ball and is exactly the sort of winger we need next season. But that was as close as Glawster were going to get to a score until they grabbed a late consolation through Dupreez after Bath had made a mass of personnel changes (something I find increasingly worrisome).

Andy Beattie grabbed the opening try when he collected a pass from a rampaging Danny Grewcock, and a Chris Malone penalty made it 20-0 entering the closing quarter. This was quickly followed up by scores for Lee Mears and Wylie Human with Alex Crockett sealing the win and a bonus point at the end after Dupreez had scored.

Matt Perry pulled up worryingly towards the end with what looked like hamstring trouble and was replaced by Mike Catt, playing his final game for Bath at the Rec. The crowd roared its approval with Catt's appearance and whatever was said (or not said) between player and club, Mike Catt will have left today knowing he has a special place in the heart of all Bathonians and, when he retires, his best memories will be of his times in the blue, black and white.

Regardless of what happens at Twickenham in three weeks time, this has been a season to remember. I strongly believe it is our destiny to win the Championship game but, if I am wrong, I will walk away from the 2003/04 season with a spring in my step and my hat cocked at a very jaunt angle because, like all of you, I have witnessed something just about short of a miracle. Bath Rugby has struggled throughout the professional era, even when we won the European Cup, and I never thought we could regain the status so enjoyed when Barnes, Hill, Hall, Redman, Guscott and many others graced The Rec. However I think we are at the start of a Bath Rugby renaissance and I think it is bloody marvellous! C'mon you Bath.

Let's have a look at the final league table.

Bath: Perry, Higgins, Davey, Fleck, Human, Malone, Wood, Barnes, Humphreys(capt), Bell, Borthwick, Grewcock, Beattie, Lipman, Feaunati
Replacements: Blake, Mears, Flatman, Crockett, Catt, Scaysbrook, Fidler.

Glawster: Goodridge, Garvey, Fanolua, Paul, Simpson-Daniel, McRae, Gomarsall, Woodman, Fortey, Deacon, Cornwell, Brown, Boer (capt), Buxton, Paramore.
Replacements: Du Preez, Roncero, Wood, Eustace, Hazell, Amor, Todd.

Referee: Steve Lander