Bath defeated Castres Olympique in the third round of the Investec Champions Cup in a physical encounter on Friday evening.
Here’s how we rated the Bath players:
Backs
15 Santiago Carreras: It really was an evening to forget for the multi-talented Argentinian, dropping balls which really shouldn’t have been dropped, and missing numerous tackles. He did make one solid offload to Finn Russell in the early stages for what should have been a guaranteed try, if not for the Scotsman’s poor decision-making, but otherwise Carreras wasn’t at the races all evening. He was easily beaten on the outside by Christian Ambadiang in the first half, fumbled a late high ball under very little pressure and knocked on a simple pass from Russell at the death. 3
14 Henry Arundell: Barely involved, yet still managed to miss four tackles. Tripped up and went backwards when he eventually received the ball. Not a good look with Joe Cokanasiga reduced to the bench. 3
13 Max Ojomoh: A box of tricks and made important yards with every carry. He’s stepped up his game exponentially over the past few years, and all his skills were on full display here. Even in the early stages when Bath were up against the grain, he stood out, appearing to have more time than many. Made a great assist for the Muir try, and showed great hands throughout. 7
12 Cameron Redpath: Took his try well, but otherwise was underwhelming. Couldn’t create any space with the ball, getting caught in contact too often, and struggled to make his tackles count. 5
11 Will Muir: Chosen ahead of Joe Cokanasiga, his first action was to chase down a Finn Russell kick. He looked to have been beaten by the returning Castres player, but the strength of his tackle was that he still managed to strip the ball to force an attacking scrum. His rustiness showed shortly after, however, when he took out the opposition fullback in an awful aerial challenge, which landed him with a yellow card. The ‘horse’ looked dangerous when he finally stretched his legs down the left-hand side, but like the run of the day, he then threw a forward pass. Got on the scoresheet in the final minutes, which will have given his confidence a much-needed boost. 6
10 Finn Russell: He made some poor decisions early on. The first one was a pass that went straight to the floor, and the second, choosing not to pass to the free Arundell on the wing, instead got caught in possession. His evening turned around with a clever kick to the corner midway through the first half, and from then on, he grew into the game. Not vintage, but passable. 6
9 Ben Spencer: Assisted in both of Bath’s first two tries and kicked well throughout. Spencer rarely has a bad game, and today was no exception. His insistence on doing the basics at the very highest quality ensured that Bath returned from their shaky start to regain control and eventually the lead. 7
Forwards
8 Alfie Barbeary: The star of the match, no doubt. He beat seven defenders through pure power and resilience and looked menacing each time he had possession. When he wasn’t launching defenders off of him, he was using his silky hands to set Beno Obano up for a try. Admittedly, he gave away a couple of penalties, but he can afford to if he plays like that. It was another step forward for the giant number eight, who has truly moved the dial this season. 9
7 Miles Reid: He put the ‘miles’ in defence before being removed shortly into the second half. In attack, he was quieter, but made the most of his time on the ball, beating three defenders in just four carries. 7
6 Ted Hill: Slid over for Bath’s second try and used all his athleticism to get around the park to provide forward momentum in attack. He was guilty of losing the ball on a couple of occasions, however, and wasn’t as strong in tackle as he’d have liked. He did provide a suitable lineout opinion, however, taking the ball on four separate occasions. 6
5 Ross Molony: The former Leinster lock was incredible in the lineout, taking the ball cleanly off Tom Dunn eight times. Defensively, he was solid, particularly in the second half of the match when those around him were tiring. 7
4 Quinn Roux: Bath’s defensive rock. He didn’t do much around the park from an attacking sense, but he was constantly on hand to clean loose ball, as well as putting his giant frame into the breakdown. 6
3 Billy Sela: Considering the front-row options Bath currently have, it’s no small feat to be given the starting berth. The England A player was great in the close-quarter battles, notably winning the ball back in a maul shortly before he came off. He scrummed extremely hard, winning most collisions. 7
2 Tom Dunn: As always, he led from the front, demanding the ball to charge headfirst into the Castres defensive line, as well as using that battle-hardened body to halt any reparations. Scored Bath’s third try. 7
1 Beno Obano: Conceded an early yellow card for a croc roll, which saw the Castres player’s leg bend the wrong way. From then on, it was business as usual for the criminally underrated Bath star. He was immovable at scrum-time, and left everything out on the field. He finished second-highest in both carries and tackles for the visitors. 7
Replacements: Thomas du Toit gave away an unnecessary penalty shortly after arriving on the field. Will Butt then made up for it with a turnover and provided the much-needed power in the midfield. Guy Pepper got involved in everything, and Tom Carr-Smith finished off the game, scoring after being on the field just a minute. Exactly the response you want from a bench. 7
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