Ronan O’Gara relished many a wet and wild rugby night during his playing days with Munster, and this soggy encounter would have evoked fond memories. His La Rochelle side displayed a touch of old-school Irish grit by seizing an early advantage on a miserable evening, building a substantial lead that shielded them from a spirited Bath comeback. As the curtain-raiser to the new Champions Cup season, it was a thought-provoking spectacle for English observers. Bath, currently atop the Premiership table and widely regarded as formidable contenders in Pool 2, received a stark reminder that French Top 14 packs are formidable when they have something to prove.
Bath’s fortunes were further hampered when their captain and key tactical kicker, Ben Spencer, was sidelined with a tight hamstring on the eve of the game. Without their crucial scrum-half, they struggled to perform at their best in a lopsided first half, only finding their rhythm late in the second. An opportunistic try by lock Quinn Roux brought the hosts within a point late in the third quarter, but a subsequent penalty from Ihaia West sealed the victory for the 2022 and 2023 tournament champions.
O’Gara had been urging his team all week to elevate their performance and effort levels. Following their shock defeat to Vannes, he highlighted a lack of ‘attitude, balls, and character’—elements he deemed essential for success. The need for improvement was evident, regardless of the adverse conditions. The rain-soaked night in the west country was reminiscent of a dark, stormy horror film, testing the resilience of spectators in the Dyson stand, where tickets ranged from £89 to £59.
It quickly became clear that Storm Darragh was not the only formidable force Bath had to contend with. Utilizing their powerful maul as a battering ram, La Rochelle scored two tries within the first 26 minutes—first by back-row forward Oscar Jegou and then by loosehead prop Reda Wardi, following a sustained drive that pushed Bath’s forwards backpedaling across their 22.
Despite La Rochelle’s inconsistent domestic form, their confidence visibly grew, exemplified by their third try. Despite a less-than-ideal line-out throw, Kiwi scrum-half Tawera Kerr-Barlow skillfully fielded the ball and darted past the flat-footed defense for a remarkable individual score. With West converting all three tries, La Rochelle led 21-6 at the half-hour mark—an advantage that strong teams rarely relinquish.
Bath’s woes continued when a promising attacking position just before halftime was squandered by a botched line-out, resulting in a short-arm penalty for the visitors. Overturning a 15-point deficit seemed improbable, but a glimmer of hope emerged seven minutes into the second half when a sustained Bath drive yielded a try for Tom Dunn, with Finn Russell adding a conversion to his two first-half penalties.
The game took a dramatic turn when Kerr-Barlow, attempting to retrieve a kick from Guy Pepper, failed to clearly ground the ball in goal, and Roux was judged to have touched it down first. The evidence was inconclusive, but Russell’s conversion made it a one-point game. Could Bath stage a stunning comeback? West’s 58th-minute penalty made the task more challenging, but despite a few tense moments, it was La Rochelle’s formidable players who had the final say.
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