Van Graan's reflects on 'best' Champions Cup comeback win
REACTION: Bath boss Johann van Graan hailed “two amazing teams” after his side’s epic 43-41 Champions Cup quarterfinal victory over Northampton Saints.
The Prem champions triumphed following a mesmeric 11-try encounter at the Recreation Ground and will now face holders Bordeaux-Begles or six-time tournament winners Toulouse.
It is Bath’s first semifinal appearance in the competition for 20 years.
The winning score came via a Ted Hill touchdown that Finn Russell converted four minutes from time, and shortly after, Saints’ England star Henry Pollock was yellow-carded at a ruck.
Bath had trailed 28-7 and 35-14, being blown away by Northampton’s first-half brilliance before ultimately prevailing.
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“I’ve been fortunate to be involved in rugby for a long time, and this game certainly ranks as one of the best I have been involved in. Two amazing teams,” Van Graan told Premier Sports.
“I want to give credit to Northampton – what a team they are. They put us under huge pressure.
“But what a fightback from our team. I guess you want to win games like that in that way. It is great to be part of the Champions Cup.
“We knew Northampton would start fast – we didn’t want them to start that fast – but we always knew we would come back into the game. We went into halftime with momentum.
“It could easily have gone the other way, and I want to emphasise that these are two very good sides.
“The strength of our group is the squad, and I haven’t been involved in a group so tight as this. It is amazing to see them living out their dreams.”
Attacking rugby was showcased in all its glory as the top two teams in this season’s Prem cut loose, with Northampton posting five first-half touchdowns from Pollock, Fraser Dingwall, Tom Lockett, Josh Kemeny and Ollie Sleightholme, all converted by Fin Smith.
It looked as though two Smith penalties after the break would thwart a Bath fightback as drama continued right to the end, but it was not to be following Bath tries for Hill, Russell, Kepu Tuipulotu, Henry Arundell, Francois van Wyk and Tom Dunn, while Russell booted five conversions and a penalty.
“Pretty mental game to play in,” said Alfie Barbeary, who was one of the top performers of the evening after coming on as a first-half replacement for the injured Sam Underhill.
“Class to get the result. I know my job in the team, I’ve got great players around me who make me look good.
“We didn’t look at the scoreline. We knew if we stuck to our process, we’d put in a performance.”
Saints rugby director Phil Dowson said: “Credit to Bath. We were 28-7 ahead, but never looked comfortable.
“We had many opportunities to win that game, but we didn’t manage to do it, and Bath took the lead in the 76th minute, and we couldn’t get it back.
“We are obviously disappointed with the result, but there are parts of our game we are really pleased with, so we’ve got to balance that out.
“We need to make sure we don’t get too emotional about it and focus on next week and the rest of the season.”
Sources: PA & AFP
