MATCH REPORT: Gloucester Rugby 17 Bath Rugby 18
A penalty try 90 seconds from time handed Bath Rugby victory over local rivals Gloucester in an ill-tempered West Country derby at Kingsholm.
In total five men were shown yellow cards while Gloucester's Sila Puafisi and Tavis Knoyle were sent-off as the hosts finished the game with just 11 players on the field.
The Cherry and Whites had already seen prop Puafisi dismissed for a high tackle on Bath full-back Nick Abendanon but they still led by six points with five minutes to play.
But the visitors finished strongly and Mike Tindall and Huia Edmonds were sent to the sin-bin for foul play before referee Tim Wigglesworth further incensed the Cherry and Whites by virtually gifting Bath victory with a last-gasp penalty try when a lineout drive was illegally hauled to the floor.
That sparked an ugly conclusion to the contest as Knoyle punched Bath number eight Leroy Houston to spark a mass brawl which resulted in the replacement scrum-half being given his marching orders as well.
After what seemed an age of TMO replays, fly-half George Ford was finally able to send the conversion between the sticks to hand Bath their first league win at Kingsholm since 2006.
The result strengthens Bath's position in the top four of the Aviva Premiership and they now have a five-point advantage over Harlequins in fifth.
Gloucester were out of the blocks quickly and fly-half Billy Twelvetrees fired them ahead inside three minutes with a close-range penalty.
Ford restored parity when given his first sight of the posts before Bath thought they had the first try of the afternoon, only to be denied by referee Wigglesworth.
A clever kick and chase by centre Matt Banahan saw Cherry and Whites full-back Martyn Thomas scramble the ball back over his own tryline, handing the visitors a 5m scrum. Quick ball was sent for winger Horacio Agulla to race over the whitewash but the score was chalked off for crossing.
Bath's frustrations began to mount as Twelvetrees landed two penalties in quick succession, the latter which also saw Bath flanker Carl Fearns sent to the sin-bin.
Ford was able to cut the gap with a penalty of his own before Twelvetrees saw a kick come back off the posts as the visitors survived the period without an increase to their deficit.
But just as Fearns returned to the field, Bath were back down to 14. Fellow flanker Matt Garvey was penalised for a high tackle in the last action of the half as the Cherry and Whites headed to the changing rooms 9-6 in front.
Ford missed a chance to haul Bath level early in the second half when a penalty from out wide dropped short but Garvey was soon back in action, again without any harm done on the scoreboard.
Almost immediately after Bath were back up to their full complement, Gloucester lost theirs as Abendanon was laid out by Puafisi and the replacement prop was sent-off.
Ford booted the resulting penalty to the corner and Bath then got themselves ahead for the first time from the lineout. Hooker Ross Batty's throw was claimed cleanly and the Bath pack powered over the whitewash, with skipper Stuart Hooper claiming the score. Ford was unable to convert.
A third yellow card then came the visitors' way when lock Dave Attwood was sin-binned and Twelvetrees sent the penalty through the posts to put Gloucester back in front.
And the Cherry and Whites increased their advantage when they won a turnover midway inside the Bath have and the visiting defence was caught out as centre Henry Tinder scampered over the tryline. Crucially, though, Twelvetrees could not add the extras.
The contest then boiled over as first Tindall and Edmonds were sent to the sin-bin in quick succession before referee Wigglesworth gifted Bath victory with a penalty try as a powerful lineout drive was halted illegally.
Knoyle's actions then sparked a chaotic conclusion and Ford kept his cool to send the conversion through the posts to secure Bath a vital victory.GLOUCESTER: Thomas (Cook 66), Sharples, Trinder (Burns 73), Tindall (Burns 39-40), May, Twelvetrees (c), Cowan (Knoyle 66), Wood (Murphy 59), George (Edmonds 46), Knight (Puafisi 46), Stooke, James (Hudson 63), Kalamafoni, Kvesic, Evans (Morgan 40). Try: Trinder Penalties: Twelvetrees 4BATH RUGBY: Abendanon, Rokoduguni, Banahan, Eastmond (Henson 74), Agulla (Watson 74), Ford, Young (Stringer 53), James (Catt 53, Day 68), Batty, Wilson (Perenise 53), Hooper (c), Attwood, Garvey, Fearns (Mercer 68), Houston. Replacement not used: Dunn.Tries: Hooper, Penalty Conversion: Ford Penalties: Ford 2Referee: Tim WigglesworthAttendance: 16,500
