The 29 years of angst and agony are finally at an end. Bath are champions of England once again, winners of the Premiership final for the first time to snap their long drought. But boy how they had to work for it, Leicester going hell for leather to threaten a shock – and so nearly pulling it off.
And they might well have done, too, if not for a most unfitting farewell from Dan Cole. In his final game before retirement, a stray shoulder from the veteran prop proved oh so costly for a Tigers team that he has given blood, sweat and tears too. His indiscretion, and the resultant penalty, left old king Cole laying down his crown from the sin bin and Leicester two points short; Bath worthy winners over the course of the season but not perhaps so obviously triumphant on the day.
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Perhaps, in time, this will come to be known as the Finn Russell final rather than one defined by Cole, the fly half integral and influential throughout. It was at this ground where the Scot had endured two of his darkest recent days, last year’s defeat in the Premiership final stinging deeply before a singular form of torture in the Calcutta Cup followed this February. Consider some of those ghosts exorcised, the magic man with a magic moment as he plucked an intercept to set up his side’s crucial side. After this triumph, whatever Bruce Craig is paying Russell – and both club and player have denied that it is near certain figures reporting – has surely been worth it.
They are fitting victors in a season they had, largely, dominated until this final near miss. Their treble of trophies may not be of the highest prestige but it is a mighty achievement, league success added to cup and continental crowns. Yes, their budget is big, but they have won this title in style, homegrown heroes like Miles Reid and Charlie Ewels just as important as those lured from elsewhere. They won this final without playing remotely close to their best – the mark of a champion side.
This throwback final brought together two famous clubs but ahead of kick off there was only one team in town, nary a Tiger in sight in a Bath takeover of Twickenham. All along the Chertsey Road and down to the station they gathered in expectation, a tide of blue, black and white sweeping into Allianz Stadium. Such was the exodus that it must have been a down day for the parlours of Pulteney Bridge – though one suspects a few of the city’s shop-keeps had deserted their stations to join the flood.
A fast start, you felt, was vital for Leicester given the likely impact of that crowd and Bath’s bench behemoths, and the underdogs duly delivered. Michael Cheika has talked about re-capturing the club’s DNA and the Tigers soon showed some trademark snarl, a destructive scrum setting up an equally powerful maul drive either side of a superb punted penalty from Handre Pollard. Advantage earned with the rumble, Jack van Poortvliet wrestled over from close range.
Russell got Bath going with a simple starter off the tee but could not quite get his side to find their flow in a frenetic first 20. One jink into space was scuppered by Joe Cokanasiga dropping an offload. It kickstarted a tough couple of minutes for the Scot, perhaps carrying a few unhappy memories of this place from the Six Nations, as he was run over by Olly Cracknell before shelling a pass from Ben Spencer.
Yet Bath slowly turned it on, beginning to suffocate Leicester without the ball and threatening with it on the occasions they went more than two phases without a handling error. Russell’s impact has been much mentioned since his arrival at The Rec but arguably more influential has been Thomas du Toit, the Springboks prop a force of nature in his own right and helping spur Will Stuart into a tighthead weapon himself. The South African started here in the opposite configuration to the semi-final and nudged Bath in front with a typically burly burst from the base of a ruck. Their prospects soon looked better: Julian Montoya, the Leicester captain, shown yellow after a high tackle.
But these Tigers are made of tough stuff, refusing to yield as the pressure came on in 10 minutes down a man. Restored to full complement, a soft penalty left Cheika incandescent at the half-time hooter, allowing as it did Bath to double their lead.
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November 2023 was the last time that Van Graan’s side had let an advantage at the interval slip in the Premiership, and they had no intentions on doing so now. Out of the line stepped Russell to pluck the pass of Pollard, the trophy-shy Scot snaring the toss of the double world champion. Always thinking a step ahead, Russell surged to the line before making his conversion with an inwards fling to Ojomoh, whose dad, Steve, had won ten titles with Bath in their pomp.
Leicester sent for their stalwarts, the retiring Ben Youngs and Dan Cole on in quick succession either side of the hour to rousing receptions at a place the pair know better than just about anyone. It looked like being too little, too late, when Guy Pepper produced a solo score of sheer strength only to see it chalked off for a pernickety knock-on, and Solomone Kata’s converted try moved Leicester within striking distance.
But only temporarily. Cole’s career ended in ignominy, catching Russell after a high hoist and allowing Bath to extend their lead as he slumped into his seat in the sin bin after a perhaps harsh yellow card. How costly it proved: Emeka Ilione somehow writhed to the line to leave Leicester just short; the difference the three points collected after Cole’s misdeed. Not everyone gets a fairytale finish.
