Montpellier secured a 32-14 victory against Bath in their Investec Champions Cup Pool Four opener at The Rec. The result contributed to a difficult Saturday for English clubs in the competition, following defeats for Sale, Bristol and Saracens, alongside Gloucester’s draw against Bordeaux.
Match progression
Bath entered the fixture having scored at least 33 points in each of their opening three Premiership matches of the season, but struggled to replicate that attacking output. Montpellier opened the scoring when former Scotland full-back Stuart Hogg raced in for a try, following an earlier disallowed effort from Bath’s Max Ojomoh for a knock-on.
Bath responded as England centre Ollie Lawrence barged over in the corner, before number eight Arthur Green sidestepped a defender to give the hosts the lead. A penalty from Adam Hastings kept Montpellier within reach before half-time, leaving the score at 14-10 to Bath.
Second-half turnaround
Early in the second period, Bath missed an opportunity to extend their advantage when Joe Cokanasiga failed to cleanly gather a pass with the tryline open. Montpellier capitalised immediately, scoring 22 unanswered points after the interval.
Winger Donovan Taofifenua dived into the corner to put the French side ahead 15-14. After Hastings added a penalty, Taofifenua intercepted a pass from Finn Russell on the halfway line and sprinted clear to score his second try.
Bath had another effort disallowed when Josh Bayliss’ try was ruled out for an earlier infringement. In the final minutes, Alex Becognee burrowed over from close range to confirm the win for Montpellier, the Challenge Cup winners from last season. Bath’s remaining pool fixtures include matches against Cardiff, the Bulls, and Stade Francais.
