Eight-try Bath beat Nottingham to finish best-ever BUCS Super Rugby league season on a high and take winning form into knockout stages
An eight-try home win over Nottingham in their last league match of the 2024-25 BUCS Super Rugby season sees the University of Bath men’s 1st XV go into the knockout stages with confidence high.
Wednesday’s entertaining 50-29 success at the Team Bath Sports Training Village meant third-placed Bath finished the season with 13 wins and one draw from 18 matches, and extended their current winning run to four at a time when several players have been away on U20 Six Nations and Premiership Rugby Cup duty.
The strength in depth was once again well demonstrated against Nottingham as they fought off dogged opposition, eventually pulling clear in the second half.
Prop Claudius Wheeler’s early try was quickly cancelled out but tries from Ludo Kolade, converted by Will Roue, and captain Max Pearce gave Bath a 19-5 after 30 minutes.
Nottingham cut the half-time lead to just seven points, though, with a converted score and they also replied in kind after Raff Weston had notched the opening try of the second period, again converted by Roue.
Tries from Iwan Coyle, with Roue adding the extras, and Alex Clayton gave Bath some breathing space but Nottingham again touched down to stay in the hunt and secure a well-earned bonus point.
Bath finished strongly and further tries from replacement Jimmi McNally and Henry Bartlett, plus another Roue conversion, brought up a half-century of points before Nottingham had the final word with their fifth try in the dying moments.
Attention now turns to the BUCS Super Rugby Milk Championship knockout competition, with Bath – sponsored by Team Bath partners Bath Building Society and Rengen – hosting Cardiff Met in the quarter-finals on Wednesday 26th March (6.30pm).
Match stats
University of Bath starting XV: 1 Claudius Wheeler, 2 Max Pearce (c), 3 Alfie Griffin, 4 Max Mayor, 5 Jack Bennett, 6 Harry Breeze, 7 Will Keylock, 8 Iwan Coyle; 9 leuan Davies, 10 Will Roue, 11 Alex Clayton, 12 Kit Evans, 13 Ludo Kolade, 14 Henry Bartlett, 15 Raff Weston. Replacements: 16 Yujian Zou, 17 Jacob Yates, 18 Henry Mountford, 19 Jimmi McNally, 20 Albert Dmitriev, 21 Archie Friend, 22 Luc Anfield, 23 George Doel.
Tries: Wheeler, Kolade, Pearce, Weston, Coyle, Clayton, McNally, Bartlett.
Conversions: Roue 5.
Nottingham starting XV: 1 Fin Mcintosh, 2 Sam Loftus, 3 Kane Fleary, 4 Ollie Rose, 5 Ollie Barker, 6 Sammy Lee, 7 Lawrence Adediran, 8 Harry Williams; 9 Max Cornford, 10 Jamie Annand (c), 11 Alex Garrett, 12 Freddie Vaughan, 13 Ryan Sweeting, 14 Will Howells, 15 Harry Simpson. Replacements: 16 Michael Cantle, 17 Fred Ma’a (Vc), 18 Nat Sinandima, 19 Seb Poyser, 20 Lewis Richardson, 21 Keiran Perkins, 22 Matty Walker, 23 Will Darbishire.
Tries: Sweeting 2, Howells 2, Cantle.
Conversions: Annand 2.
