Why Finn Russell came off before the end of Bath's win over Bristol
The 32-year-old was taken off with five minutes to go.
'Multiple parts of his body are cramping,' said van Graan post-match [rugbypass.com].
'He put in some effort, I thought. His goalkicking was phenomenal, the chases that he put in too. He was still cramping in the changing room but there's no reason to suppose he won't be fine.
Read more:
'It was amazing how many guys on both sides went down with cramp. It just showed the effort that both teams put in. We worked incredibly hard to get into this position, to get back to Twickenham.'
The victory means Bath have reached their second successive Gallagher Premiership final.
'We knew this was going to be a tough game and we picked a 23 that we believe will get the job done,' added van Graan.
'I thought at 34-13, we got some momentum but Bristol is a good team. They kept on attacking and it's never dead on 34-20.
'It was some game of rugby. We knew that we were going to be stretched but we actually defended pretty well.
'At half-time we spoke about our game and composure. It shows that we are a team that is fluid and adaptable. We made one or two tactical changes and then our fitness came through, our hunger, our will to win.
'At 13-6 we had a penalty. Many teams would have kicked for the posts but we went straight for the kill and made it 13-0.
'How good was the crowd! They gave us so much energy so we dominated them in the second half.
'I'm incredibly proud of this win and that we did this not only for ourselves but for the city. The people of Bath were amazing tonight.'
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Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
This Bath side can rule English rugby for a dynasty, writes DAN BIGGAR... winning the Premiership final would be a fitting end to a stunning season
There is no doubt Bath have been the best team in the Gallagher Premiership this season, but their performance to reach the final saw them go up another notch. I thought Johann van Graan's side were exceptional against Bristol on Friday night, the way they played rubberstamping their tag as champions-elect. This Bath side have everything. They will be strong favourites in Saturday's final against Leicester. Of course, anything can happen in a one-off game. You saw that in the 2024 final, when Bath prop Beno Obano was sent off. Even with 14 men, his team were only just beaten by Northampton, so you could make a good argument to say the result would have been different if he'd stayed on. So long as Bath don't go a player down this time, I think they'll win. The reason I say that is because they have the ability to play several different ways. They have an all-round game that no one else in England can match. Bristol really worried them with their attack in the first half, but the way Bath responded in the third quarter to score 28 unanswered points was exceptional. The semi-final at the Rec was a brilliant advert for the Premiership, a proper old-school derby with everything on the line played in front of a brilliant and hostile crowd. At a time when there is talk of a new breakaway league in rugby, it was a reminder of how good the English club game can be. Any side in the world would have been caused problems by some of the rugby Bristol played in the first 40 minutes. But what I liked about Bath was there was no panic. Bristol should have been further clear at the break and I think they had some tough calls go against them. What Bath were so good at in the third quarter was playing structured rugby. Yes, they still moved the ball. But they were in control after Bristol sucked them into a game of sevens in the first half. Bath have pace as well as power. They can turn the screw in different ways and their bench impact is huge. A lot of their calmness is driven by Van Graan, who is a very impressive character. Cynics might belittle his input and say Bath have spent the most money on their squad, so should be winning. That is not the case at all. Van Graan is a top-quality coach. Bath won't want to lose him and I'm sure owner Bruce Craig will tie him down to an even longer contract if Bath win the Premiership. But he looks an international coach in waiting. Yes, he has a very strong team. But he has not only put that together since joining in 2022, he also totally aligned the club on and off the field. In my time in the Premiership with Northampton, Bath were a sleeping giant - a big club in name and stature but one not delivering on the field. Now, they are. You don't always get what you deserve but if there's any justice, Bath will win the final They can win matches with brilliant attack. If you want to take them on in a dogfight, they can do that, too. Their defence is exceptional. It must be brilliant to be a part of their team right now, knowing that whatever the opposition brings, you have the tools to deal with it. I don't think I ever had that in my career and I was fortunate to play in some very good teams for both club and country. You don't always get what you deserve in professional sport. But if there is any justice in the world, it will be Bath who win the final on Saturday. Yes, Leicester will do everything they can to upset the applecart and they will undoubtedly cause Van Graan's men problems. But if all goes to plan for Bath, it is their fans who will be celebrating what would be an historic treble. That would be a fitting way for their club to finish an amazing season. It could be the start of a dynasty of them dominating English rugby for many years to come, like Saracens have done in the past. They are that good.
The Herald Scotland
6 hours ago
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Why Finn Russell came off before the end of Bath's win over Bristol
The 32-year-old was taken off with five minutes to go. 'Multiple parts of his body are cramping,' said van Graan post-match [ 'He put in some effort, I thought. His goalkicking was phenomenal, the chases that he put in too. He was still cramping in the changing room but there's no reason to suppose he won't be fine. Read more: 'It was amazing how many guys on both sides went down with cramp. It just showed the effort that both teams put in. We worked incredibly hard to get into this position, to get back to Twickenham.' The victory means Bath have reached their second successive Gallagher Premiership final. 'We knew this was going to be a tough game and we picked a 23 that we believe will get the job done,' added van Graan. 'I thought at 34-13, we got some momentum but Bristol is a good team. They kept on attacking and it's never dead on 34-20. 'It was some game of rugby. We knew that we were going to be stretched but we actually defended pretty well. 'At half-time we spoke about our game and composure. It shows that we are a team that is fluid and adaptable. We made one or two tactical changes and then our fitness came through, our hunger, our will to win. 'At 13-6 we had a penalty. Many teams would have kicked for the posts but we went straight for the kill and made it 13-0. 'How good was the crowd! They gave us so much energy so we dominated them in the second half. 'I'm incredibly proud of this win and that we did this not only for ourselves but for the city. The people of Bath were amazing tonight.'
The Guardian
7 hours ago
- The Guardian
Inspired Perese try edges Leicester past Sale and into Premiership final
And so it is the two grand old clubs of English rugby. Leicester will face off against Bath at Twickenham next Saturday – and the rest of us will have to check which century we are in. Leicester, admittedly, have featured far more among the honours this millennium, which is to say at all, than their arch rivals from the West Country, who so dominated the 1980s and 1990s. But neither team, if you asked their hoariest old warriors, could pick a foe they would rather lock horns with on a no-doubt sunny afternoon at HQ. This was a darker and more swirling affair at Welford Road. The Tigers seemed to have Sale in their pockets for half the match, but the visitors rallied midway through the second to level the scores with only 15 to play. Their tails seemed up. Then came a flash of brilliance – not the first of the afternoon by any means – and all that darkness was pierced by a try fit to win a semi-final. The final minutes played out to Leicester's beefiest squeezing out Manchester's, as English rugby's largest support bellowed them on. So familiar. Neither of these two are known for their lightness of touch. Nor did they flourish any of it for much of the match, but let it be noted that the decisive breakthroughs owed everything to brilliance. Welford Road bade farewell to some of Leicester's greatest servants, Dan Cole, Ben Youngs and captain Julián Montoya playing their last matches at the old place, but it was the newbies who won the match. Sign up to The Breakdown The latest rugby union news and analysis, plus all the week's action reviewed after newsletter promotion Adam Radwan's two first half tries, his 10th and 11th in 10 matches, since his arrival midseason from Newcastle, were taken with stunning audacity, to earn Leicester a 10-point lead at the break. Then, come the hour, or at least the 68th minute, Izaia Perese, the Wallaby whose season has been so disrupted by injury, broke the newly imposed deadlock by bursting on to a pass from 40 metres out and skinning the Sale defence to seize the keys to Twickenham. Sale, whose lightness tends to be supplied by George Ford, a previous champion with Leicester, had worked their way back into the match with a pair of penalties by the old maestro, either side of a try by Rob du Preez, put over by sweet interplay between the Curry twins and Ford again. Du Preez has played every single minute of Sale's Premiership campaign. How worthy a finalist he would have proven, but almost as soon as Ford's third penalty of the match had levelled the scores at 16-16, Perese relit the fires of Welford Road. Sale pressed in the final knockings, having survived another siege, as the minutes ticked away. Luke Cowan-Dickie charged down the left touchline, but he spilled the ball in a tackle by Freddie Steward with the clock deep in the red. Leicester, fans and players alike, went beserk, but there was one last twist of drama to be endured. Steward's head had collided with Cowan-Dickie's in the tackle that dislodged the ball. One last séance by TMO was required. It was decided that Steward, who was virtually prone on the floor when the tackle was made, could not conceivably have gone any lower. His arms were up in an attempt to make the tackle. But not as up as everybody else's after referee Matt Carley waved his to confirm once and for all the end of the match. Some heroes of yore had the send-off they craved. But there is one last battle to come.
