Double-chasing University of Bath determined to add cup to league crown after reaching first final of BUCS Super Rugby era
Head Coach Aaron James says his double-chasing University of Bath men’s 1st XV are determined to “go one step further” when they contest their first knockout final of the BUCS Super Rugby era.
A 36-20 home victory over Durham saw the 2025-26 league champions finally reach the BSR Milk Championship trophy decider having fallen just short in their five previous semi-finals.
They will now face old rivals Loughborough, who finished two points behind Bath in the league, at Newport RFC’s Rodney Parade on Wednesday 22nd April (3.30pm, click here to purchase tickets).
“We’re elated we have one trophy this season but we want to go that next step further,” said James. “Winning the final would be a huge reward for everyone and the commitment they have shown this year.
“We have 45 players training this week knowing that only 23 of them can be picked for the final but they are all invested in the overall goal. This is Week 33 of our performance programme, which is a huge commitment for students, and they have all been fantastic.
“The exciting thing is there is still plenty of room for improvement from the players, and that is keeping us grounded and focussed. The scoreline says we won well against Durham but our penalty and error count was too high.
“We are determined to produce our best performance in the final and hopefully we will have a large travelling support to cheer us on. We’ve had some incredible backing this season, from the University, sponsors, The SU, Bath Rugby, the wider Bath community and Alumni but especially from the student rugby club itself.
“Whether it’s 50 or 550 of them in the crowd, ‘The Brothers’ have created a brilliant atmosphere and it is a testament to the committee and the culture we have worked hard to develop.”
Bath, sponsored by Bath Building Society and Rengen, go into the final on the back of a 13-match winning run, their latest victory coming on the 3G Pitch at the Team Bath Sports Training Village.
Both the hosts and Durham took time to settle and there were 27 minutes on the clock when the deadlock was finally broken, captain Max Pearce peeling off the back of a rolling maul to touch down.
The second try followed three minutes later following a rapid break from Tyler Offiah, who dummied to pass outside before finding Freddy Rossigneux on his inside for a score underneath the posts, leaving Will Roue with a simple conversion.
Bath’s pressure led to a penalty try soon after but Durham cut the half-time deficit to 19-5 when Charlie Thompson scored just before the break.
Louie Platt then kicked a penalty for the visitors early in the second half but any fears of a comeback were ended when Bath ruthlessly pounced on two handling errors to score intercept tries through Isaac Mears and Sam Winters, Roue adding both conversions.
Durham scored twice in the last 10 minutes through Archie Clarke and Marcus Rhodes but Bath had the last word as a Roue penalty sealed a 36-20 victory.
Tickets for the final are available to purchase by clicking here.
Watch the semi-final in full
Match stats
University of Bath starting XV: 1 Claudius Wheeler, 2 Max Pearce (cc), 3 Alfie Griffin, 4 Rory McKnight, 5 Isaac Sprenger, 6 Connor Treacey (cc), 7 Iwan Coyle, 8 Enoch Opoku-Gyamfi; 9 Isaac Mears, 10 Will Roue, 11 Tyler Offiah, 12 Luc Anfield, 13 Jack Harrison, 14 Sam Winters, 15 Freddy Rossigneux. Replacements: 16 Oscar Thomas, 17 Jacob Yates, 18 Diamond Ayiehfor, 19 Albert Dmitriev, 20 Alex Ridgway, 21 Roman Andrews, 22 James Beverley, 23 Will Keylock.
Tries: Pearce, Rossigneux, penalty, Mears, Winters.
Conversions: Roue 3.
Penalty: Roue.
Durham starting XV: 1 Timmy Gecer, 2 Louis Inman, 3 Ethan Hulme, 4 Archie Clarke, 5 Dom Wade, 6 Cameron Collie, 7 Jonny Smith, 8 Marcus Rhodes (c); 9 Will Windows, 10 Louie Platt, 11 Charlie Thompson, 12, Finlay Stables, 13 Aaron Pope, 14 Rory Telfer, 15 Harry Dawson. Replacements: 16 Will Ayton, 17 Leon Tahana, 18 Sam Graham, 19 Julius Turley, 20 Oli Gordon, 21 Fergus Callington, 22 Ben Motamed, 23 Victor Ravaline.
Tries: Thompson, Clarke, Rhodes.
Conversion: Ravaline.
Penalty: Platt.
