TRICK OR TREAT? BATH v SALE
Russell: maestro!
By Bath Supporter Roy
October 28 2026
Halloween at the Rec, and the scariest thing on show lately has been the phantom tries we’ve missed out on from our trips to the opposition 22 in recent games. Bath have had phase on phase in the red zone in recent matches, yet we come away with a fraction of the points that the territory and pressure should earn - and did earn until recently. The nightmare started with the held up try in the Exeter semi-final last year, and ever since an out of sorts attack has often been stumbling in the final few inches, sleepwalking into held-up turnovers.
Kingsholm typified it. For long stretches of the first half, Bath had Gloucester on the tackle rack, at times down to 13 men, but we lost that 20-minute phase 9-0. Our maul try on the stroke of half-time saved a few blushes. Ninety seconds after the restart we were held up over the line again. Once may be bad luck; this often presents a frightening pattern.
Pick-and-go and the close-range maul used to be our banker. We’d close out key moments in a ceaseless barrage of monstrous carries, and teams couldn’t live with the waves of power. But with TdT now bulldozing for the Durban Sharks and defences seemingly having deciphered the routine, the strike rate has collapsed. Goal-line pressure only counts when it becomes points on the board and bodies in the bin, but we got the bodies without the points.
Contrast that with what has been done to us. Northampton a fortnight earlier, and Gloucester on 53 minutes: a couple of phases only, speed and movement, and a searing line straight through a backtracking defence. Is it the deception of the opposition’s attack, or the price of our pressure and rush in D? Our defence can drive teams backwards when it lands but leaves a gap to find when it doesn’t.
There was a glimmer in the second half around 45 mins - our first set of attacks started looking wider and further from the ruck, forwards and backs in mixed interplay, passing the ball a couple times per phase, and Gloucester looked stretched for the first time all night. More of that, please, it should not take the first half to realise the need for variation and pace.
Santi’s ACL and Pepper’s ankle now join Underhill, Bhatti, and DDP on the treatment table. Scott Kirk’s new toe injury means we are down to “the kids of the kids” at loosehead. I would say we’ve got off lightly on injuries over the past two seasons, chance is balancing the books at the moment. This means an acceleration in blooding our youngsters and, without being too pessimistic, this season emerging as a transition season of sorts. Time invested in new talents now will bear fruit alongside a likely sprinkling of post world-cup stars swelling the ranks.
Very, very briefly - credit to Gloucester. Our first Prem defeat to them since November 2022 says as much about their recovery as about our fall, and they had earned it by half-time, ahead despite two yellow cards and untold pressure.
Now onto our opposition - another side whose teeth have gone blunt. Sale were held to just three points against Newcastle in a gale, the Red Bulls’ first win of the season. In a reflection of the modern game, Ford’s sole penalty was their first penalty goal of his team’s season.
Sanderson called last season (their worst league finish in seven years) ‘a year of transition’, he cleared out fifteen players, and signed Courtney Lawes, Joe Marchant, Christ Tshiunza, Nicky Smith, and Tomas Francis. In reality, Sale are still forming again as a side, and we are (should be) further along the process, with recent history on our side: before September’s PREM Cup reverse (50-28 in Salford), Bath had beaten Sale eight times running. Sale’s last league win at the Rec came in 2022.
The killer factor this week will be conversion. Can one of these teams start to use deception and depth to score tries from range in fewer, but more decisive phases? Or will we see a race to the bottom, two monstrous packs slogging pick-and-go’s, with Spencer and Russell’s out-of-form boots determining the rest.
Are we in for a trick - a Halloween home loss, or a treat – Bath’s attack firing from distance, Finn remembering he’s a maestro, and the young tyros showing their class AND composure in the red zone.
In JVG we trust, Prendergast must be given time as Blackett was, it can’t all be champagne and trophies… we must take the rough with the smooth, and better the rough in winter and the smooth in Summer… Come on you BATH.
Suggested Team – match the Sale pack first up, keep the youngster’s blend, not enough forwards remaining for the 6-2..?
1. Beno
2. Dunn
3. Griffin
4. Ewels
5. Jeanes
6. Hill
7. Bayliss
8. Green
9. Spencer
10. Russell
11. Hennessey
12. Redpath
13. Ojomoh (if fit enough)
14. Griffin
15. De Glanville (back in training)
16. Frost
17. ??? Ioan Emanuel / Claudius Wheeler ??? whoever is left
18. Verden
19. Opoku-Gyamfi
20. Reid
21. Carr-Smith
22. Donoghue
23. Lawrence
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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2026:10:28:08:33:51 by P G Tips.
Not going to let any of that stop me tho....
Tdg
Arundell
Hennessey
Mojo
Griffin
Finn
Spencer
Beno
Dunn
Stuart
EO-G
Ewels
Richards
Reid
Green
Bench: frost, emmanuel, griffin, jeanes, bayliss, tcs, redpath, jaco
I assume kepu out. Giving hill , lawrence and big joe a break as all look out of sorts
Toss up between griffin and offiah.
No idea if roux is fit or not.
Tempting to go 5:3 with question marks over tdg and arundell.
I've said it ad nauseam, but pick and drives that don't result in a try should be regarded no differently to butchering a 2 on 1.
Nice report presenting a more balanced view to my febrile attitude at the moment!
We have been unfortunate on injuries of late or perhaps for the past two years we were very fortunate.
If we don't win this, and that is a serious possibility, we need to look to ourselves very closely.
Earlier in the season we started to pick and drive for a few goes and then two or three passes to a man in space.
We should never pick and go more than 5 times......
The last home game was dire and reminiscent of Hooper’s era so I’d actually just settle for Bath entertaining us.
TdG
Cokanasiga
Hennessey
Ojomoh
Arundell
Russell
Van der Linde
Obano
Dunn
Griffin
Ewels
Roux
Hill
Bayliss
Green
Wheeler Frost Stuart EOG Reid Spencer Redpath Coetzee
Think Archie Griffin has done well, keeping Stuart benching to help Wheeler or EmmanueL at scrum time. Get Lewis Boyce on the phone.....
adopted player, 24/25 Hame Faiva. 23/24 Ted Hill. 22/23 Cam Redpath. 21/22 Max Clark. 20/21 Henry Thomas. 19/20 Max Wright. 18/19 Cooper Vuna.
Certainly with the options coming back there it would be frustrating not to give Hennessey a run at 13.
Does feel like a must win game even if in the bigger picture it's probably not. Might be up against the only team playing more below where they should be than us and should be a nervy international break for Sanderson if we can take the points on Saturday
Quote:Optimist
I very much hope that Finn and coaches will remember that it was he who initially converted us from pick-and-go headbangers into red-zone efficiency monsters, by actually wanting the ball.
I've said it ad nauseam, but pick and drives that don't result in a try should be regarded no differently to butchering a 2 on 1.
I'd go even further, even though I know it will never happen. Every failed pick n die from 1 metre out after 5 is one point to the defending team
Quote:theredseat
Certainly with the options coming back there it would be frustrating not to give Hennessey a run at 13.
Hennessy was with the Wales squad at the start of the week so quite probable Tandy told him to have a good one this weekend.
De Glanville has started training, but will he be ready?
It could be we will be stretched in the backline as well as front row. At least in Griffin & Offiah we have some good wing backups should reshuffles be necessary there.
Reid should be available for the pack. Not sure what has happened to Roux as he has yet to feature in injury updates, so hopefully he will be available.
PG
I think Hennessy will play 13 and I've a suspicion Lawrence will play 12. Pack kinda picks itself and I hope BVDL is fit as I think he's the only way Spencer gets a break and we shake it up a bit.
Obano Dunn Stuart EOG Ewels Hill Reid Green
Spencer Finn Arundell/Muir Lawrence Hennessy JCok TDG
Frost Emman Griffin Roux Bayliss BVDL Donoghue JC23
Good shout trs to maybe hold back stuart to help out emmanuel.
Almost every team in the league subs their 9 in and around the 50-60 minute mark, and Spencer isn't getting any younger, so think we need to be braver in trusting our alternate options at 9, both to preserve Spencer but also just to give our game more energy and some variation.
Quote:dr.bath1865
Sorry- as in, a break from playing the full 80 minutes... or 74 minutes if it's a lost cause.
Almost every team in the league subs their 9 in and around the 50-60 minute mark, and Spencer isn't getting any younger, so think we need to be braver in trusting our alternate options at 9, both to preserve Spencer but also just to give our game more energy and some variation.
Drawback of a 6:2 bench and need to keep a back on the bench until late in the game? Unless you want Bayliss on the wing!
Need to hold someone back and tends to be our bench 9 when we have a 6:2 bench.
I'm not sure the week before an international break and following a disrupted training week is the optimal time to change from this unless there's availability and match fitness issues to account for