Bath will be looking to complete a season treble and win their first Gallagher Premiership title since 1996 when they face star-studded Leicester Tigers in the Grand Final at Allianz Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
Bath | Draw | Leicester Tigers
Handicap
Bath | Leicester Tigers
Following their Grand Final heartbreak of a year ago, Johann van Graan’s charges have been on another level this season, earning some measure of revenge by thumping champions Northampton Saints 38-16 in the first round of the Premiership to set the tone for what has been a campaign of utter dominance.
Aside from finishing the regular season a jaw-dropping 11-points clear at the summit of the standings, the Somerset club bagged a Premiership Rugby Cup title in March before adding the EPCR Challenge Cup crown to their haul after beating Lyon in Cardiff last month.
All that said, they were made to work hard for last week’s eventual 34-20 semi-final win over Bristol Bears after trailing 6-13 at the break and should expect an even tougher test in the form of Leicester.
With club legends Dan Cole and Ben Youngs playing their final pro games, and the likes of coach Michael Cheika, captain Julian Montoya and one Handre Pollard all set to depart Welford Road at the end of the campaign, the competition’s most successful side will be going all out to prevent the seemingly inevitable.
Leicester did well to finish the round robin stages in second place but will have two league defeats to Bath this season still fresh in the memory. Coming off the back of a bruising 21-16 semi-final defeat of Sale Sharks may also count against them in their quest to bag a first championship since 2022.
The likes of flankers Hanro Liebenberg and Tommy Reffell, and even Montoya himself will have to be on the money at the breakdown if they’re to have any hope of slowing down the machinations of an in-form Ben Spencer-Finn Russell halfback combo. The duo has looked imperious of late, particularly in the Challenge Cup final, and once they find their rhythm they’re very difficult to stop.
Verdict: Bath on the minus
Bath to put the cherry on top of what has already been an historic season, and end their 29-year wait for Premiership glory.
