Bristol end Saints' winning run despite Van der Mescht's effort
WRAP: Northampton Saints suffered their first Premiership defeat of the season, going down 12-46 to Bristol Bears at Ashton Gate.
The hosts dominated from the outset, scoring five unanswered tries in the first half to take a 35-0 lead at the break, with Edoardo Todaro receiving a 20-minute red card for the Saints.
Northampton showed signs of fight after the break, with former Sharks forwards JJ van der Mescht and Tom Litchfield crossing for tries. However, Luka Ivanishvili’s late score sealed a commanding victory for the Bears.
In Saturday’s other fixture, Gloucester recorded their first Prem win of the season at the sixth attempt after beating Harlequins 26-15 at Kingsholm.
Fullback Ben Redshaw stole the show with two tries as Gloucester triumphed for the first time in league action since May.
Flanker Lewis Ludlow and wing Ollie Thorley also crossed for George Skivington’s team, securing a bonus-point success complemented by flyhalf Ross Byrne kicking three conversions.
Quins, whose England star Marcus Smith endured a frustrating afternoon, trailed by only two points at the interval, but could not add to touchdowns from wing Cadan Murley and skipper Alex Dombrandt, with Smith adding a conversion and penalty.
The visitors produced only occasional glimpses of their trademark attacking game, and second-half inaccuracy cost them dear as Gloucester eased home without remotely hitting top gear.
Gloucester monopolised initial possession and territory but Quins struck from their first attack to take a 10th-minute lead when Murley applied a simple finish after centre Jarrod Evans’ pinpoint pass freed him in space.
The home side’s response, though, was immediate and impressive as Redshaw carved open the Quins defence, beating three players before side-stepping a fourth to claim an outstanding try that Byrne converted.
Quins remained on the back foot, with their cause not helped by losing tighthead prop Titi Lamositele to injury, yet it proved a rapid regrouping process with Dombrandt touching down for his 50th Premiership try before Smith’s conversion opened up a 12-7 lead.
Gloucester had lost their early zip, undermined by frustrating handling errors, and both sides’ lowly league positions accurately reflected a first half high on endeavour but lacking quality.
And there was an inevitability about a mistake gifting the game’s fourth try after Quins wing Rodrigo Isgro kicked wildly from deep inside his own 22, allowing Ludlow to gather and score on his 250th Gloucester appearance.
Byrne then further punished Isgro’s horrible blunder by converting and sending Gloucester in at half-time holding a 14-12 advantage.
A forgettable third quarter saw no change in the scoreline until Gloucester struck again on the hour mark as Redshaw pounced for his second try and Byrne’s conversion left Quins floundering.
Smith then cut the gap to six points through a well-struck penalty, yet Thorley took Gloucester clear courtesy of an impressive finish that highlighted a strong individual display and left Quins with no way back.
Quins went in search of a losing bonus as the clock ticked down, but Gloucester comfortably denied them and got their Prem campaign finally up and running.
Gloucester 26-15 Harlequins
The scorers:
For Gloucester
Tries: Redshaw 2, Ludlow, Thorley
Cons: Byrne 3
For Harlequins:
Tries: Murley, Dombrandt
Con: Smith
Pen: Smith
Teams:
Gloucester: 15 Ben Redshaw, 14 Rob Russell, 13 Will Joseph, 12 Seb Atkinson, 11 Ollie Thorley, 10 Ross Byrne, 9 Tomos Williams (captain), 8 Will Trenholm, 7 Lewis Ludlow, 6 Deian Gwynne, 5 Matias Alemanno, 4 Freddie Thomas, 3 Kirill Gotovtsev, 2 Seb Blake, 1 Ciaran Knight
Replacements: 16 Kealan Freeman-Price, 17 Val Rapava Ruskin, 18 Afo Fasogbon, 19 Cam Jordan, 20 Josh Basham, 21 Mikey Austin, 22 Charlie Atkinson, 23 Jack Cotgreave
Harlequins: 15 Cameron Anderson, 14 Rodrigo Isgró, 13 Oscar Beard, 12 Jarrod Evans, 11 Cadan Murley, 10 Marcus Smith, 9 Will Porter, 8 Alex Dombrandt (captain), 7 Will Evans, 6 Chandler Cunningham-South, 5 Kieran Treadwell, 4 Stephan Lewies, 3 Titi Lamositele, 2 Jack Walker, 1 Fin Baxter
Replacements: 16 George Turner, 17 Boris Wenger, 18 Pedro Delgado, 19 Guido Petti Pagadizàbal, 20 Jack Kenningham, 21 Lucas Friday, 22 Luke Northmore, 23 Nick David
Referee: Luke Pearce
Assistant Referees: Jamie Parr, Jonathan Healy
TMO: Craig Maxwell Keys
Bristol Bears 46-12 Northampton Saints
The scorers:
For Bristol Bears:
Tries: Marmion 2, Jordan, Ravouvou, Boshoff, Ivanishvili
Cons: Worsley 5
Pens: Worsley 2
For Northampton Saints
Tries: Van der Mescht, Litchfield
Con: Smith
Teams:
Bristol Bears: 15 Tom Jordan, 14 Jack Bates, 13 Benhard Janse van Rensburg, 12 James Williams, 11 Kalaveti Ravouvou, 10 Sam Worsley, 9 Kieran Marmion, 8 Viliame Mata, 7 Fitz Harding (captain), 6 Santiago Grondona, 5 Joe Batley, 4 Pedro Rubiolo, 3 Lovejoy Chawatama, 2 Harry Thacker, 1 Jake Woolmore
Replacements: 16 Gabriel Oghre, 17 Max Lahiff, 18 Jimmy Halliwell, 19 Joe Owen, 20 Luka Ivanishvili, 21 Sam Wolstenholme, 22 Louis Rees-Zammit, 23 Aidan Boshoff
Northampton Saints: 15 George Furbank (captain), 14 Edoardo Todaro, 13 Tom Litchfield, 12 Toby Thame, 11 Amena Caqusau, 10 Fin Smith, 9 Archie McParland, 8 Callum Chick, 7 Sam Graham, 6 Josh Kemeny, 5 JJ van der Mescht, 4 Ed Prowse, 3 Trevor Davison, 2 Craig Wright, 1 Emmanuel Iyogun
Replacements: 16 Robbie Smith, 17 Tom West, 18 Cleopas Kundiona, 19 Archie Benson, 20 Tom Pearson, 21 Tom James, 22 Rory Hutchinson, 23 James Pater
Referee: Ian Tempest
Assistant Referees: Hamish Grant, Mike Hudson
TMO: Dan Jones
Source: PA Sports
