Bears get mauled at home by stunning Clermont attack
CHAMPIONS CUP MATCH REPORT: In a thrilling display of attacking rugby at Ashton Gate Stadium, Clermont outscored the Bears by seven tries to the home team’s five to take the match 51-38.
A hat-trick from Kotaro Matsushima helped the French side on their way to a pivotal European away success, with a total of 12 tries scored in a thrilling clash in the West Country.
Clermont raced into a commanding lead, with a try from Matsushima, an intercept score from Apisai Naqalevu who sprinted clear from inside his own half, and a third from Damian Penaud who cut inside and scored near the posts.
All three tries were converted by Camille Lopez, but it was Bristol who would eventually get onto the scoresheet through Max Malins who found the perfect line and darted between two Clermont defenders to score at the sticks.
The French side soon brought up the try bonus point as they worked another overlap with relative ease before finding Matsushima who had enough pace to burn the final Bristol defender and stay in touch before diving over the whitewash.
Bryan Byrne was the next to go over from the back of a powerful driving maul, with Callum Sheedy converting to cut the gap to 12 points.
The sides then traded penalties either side of the break before Bristol narrowed the margin to eight points, with Henry Purdy having no problem barging past several French defenders before rolling back to Harry Randall who was able to work past the final man and score in the
But Clermont soon took over again, with Penaud again crossing before Fritz Lee bulldozed his way over the try line after Bristol’s defence splintered with relative ease.
The French side then brought up the half-century of points as Matsushima grabbed a third try of the afternoon, dummying, stepping and sprinting away for a simple score.
Ioan Lloyd and Siale Piutau would add consolation tries, helping the hosts earn a try bonus point but it wasn’t enough to trouble Clermont who would leave Ashton Gate with all five points.
The scorers
For the Bears
Tries: Malins, Byrne, Randall, Lloyd, Piutau
Cons: Malins 2, Sheedy 3
Pens: Sheedy
For Clermont Auvergne
Tries: Matsushima 3, Penaud 2, Nakalevu, Lee
Cons: Lopez 5
Pens: Lopez 2
Yellow cards: Sébastien Bézy (Clermont, 70)
Teams
Bristol Bears: 15 Max Malins, 14 Alapati Leiua, 13 Piers O’Conor, 12 Siale Piutau (captain), 11 Henry Purdy, 10 Callum Sheedy, 9 Harry Randall, 8 Nathan Hughes, 7 Daniel Thomas, 6 Ben Earl, 5 Joe Joyce, 4 Ed Holmes, 3 John Afoa, 2 Bryan Byrne, 1 Jake Woolmore.
Replacements: 16 Will Capon, 17 Yann Thomas, 18 Kyle Sinckler, 19 Dave Attwood, 20 Jake Heenan, 21 Andy Uren, 22 Ioan Lloyd, 23 Ratu Naulago.
ASM Clermont Auvergne: 15 Kotaro Matsushima, 14 Damian Penaud, 13 Apisai Naqalevu, 12 George Moala, 11 Alivereti Raka, 10 Camille Lopez (captain), 9 Morgan Parra, 8 Fritz Lee, 7 Sébastien Vahaamahina, 6 Judicaël Cancoriet, 5 Paul Jedrasiak, 4 Sitaleki Timani, 3 Rabah Slimani, 2 Adrien Pélissié, 1 Etienne Falgoux.
Replacements: 16 Etienne Fourcade, 17 Peni Ravai, 18 Sipili Falatea, 19 Thibaud Lanen, 20 Tavite Veredamu, 21 Sébastien Bézy, 22 Tim Nanai-Williams, 23 Tani Vili.
Referee: Andrew Brace (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Craig Maxwell-Keys (England), Paul Dix (England)
TMO: Trevor Fisher (England)
Source: @ChampionsCup
