
The Guinness Premiership game between Bath and Worcester Warriors at the Rec on Saturday Feb 20 2010.
A fourth successive Guinness Premiership for Bath was tempered only by a shoulder injury to the former Springbok Butch James.
For Worcester, however, who had flanker Tom Wood sent off for dropping his knee into Bath lock Peter Short after an hour of an often fractious contest at The Rec, it's now all about Premiership survival.
With Leeds having defied the odds to win at Sale on Friday night, the Warriors are now just one point clear of the drop zone and with relegation a distinct possibility considering they still have to travel to Headingley on the penultimate weekend of the season.
To their credit, they were combative for much of this game and even enjoyed a first half lead after thanks to Willie Walker's converted try after seven minutes.
However, having been sucked into relegation trouble shortly before Christmas, Bath have prospered since the return of James and established themselves in this game on the back of the South African's controlling display at outside half.
It came as no real surprise therefore that by half time the hosts were in front courtesy of two tries from the outstanding Joe Maddock and a conversion and penalty from Ryan Davis.
The loss of James shortly after the interval threatened to undermine Bath's victory bid, but when Wood saw red for his moment of madness, the hosts took control and duly ran riot with three tries in the final quarter.
First it was Michael Claasens - the scrum half picking up from a ruck two metres short of the Worcester line and after an audacious dummy that sent Worcester heading for the nearby River Avon, nipped in for Davis convert.
Matt Banahan was next over the line, after a length of the field move that featured the out of favour England wing on three separate occasions and finally, with victory already assured, replacement Jonny Fa'amatuainu barged his way over for a try that Davis, this time, failed to improve.
Match details
Bath: N Abendanon (J Cuthbert 72); J Maddock, S Hape, R Davis, R Davis, M Banahan; B James (O Barkley 47), M Claasens (capt, M Baxter 74)); D Flatman (D Barnes 63), L Mears (P Dixon 63), D Bell (D Wilson 57), S Hooper, P Short (S Hobson 74), B Skirving (J Fa'amatuainu 69), J Salvi, L Watson
Worcester Warriors: C Latham; C Pennell, D Rasmussen, S Tuitupou, M Benjamin; W Walker (M Jones 69), J Arr; A Black (M Mullan 53), A Lutui (C Fortey 63), T Taumoepeau (O Sourgens 70), G Rawlinson, C Gillies (G Kitchener 63), T Wood, P Sanderson (capt), K Horstmann (C Cracknell 79)
Referee: T Wigglesworth (RFU)
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