Baker at the double

Two tries from Dan Baker made sure Ospreys stay in touch at the top of the Pro12 table after a convincing 53-22 home win against strugglers Zebre.

Baker had his first after just three minutes and earned his team a bonus point with Ospreys' fourth try early in the second half.

Ospreys could have had the lead after two minutes but Sam Davies' kick hit the posts.

But they were straight back on the attack and a minute later Baker had their first score of the match, Davies making amends for the earlier miss.

It was going to be a long match for the Italians and they found themselves further behind after seven minutes as Baker turned provider for Josh Matavesi and Davies helped himself to another two from the boot.

Zebre earned themselves a penalty after 10 minutes and got on the board through the boot of Gonzalo Garcia.

However, the home side moved further ahead after 16 minutes thanks to a penalty from Davies.

The flyhalf added another three to his tally with a kick in front of the posts five minutes later but Zebre weren't going down without a fight and worked their way within a metre of the Ospreys line.

However, despite their brief flirtation with attack, the Italians were struggling and Steve Tandy's men further cemented their dominance when Scott Baldwin added his side's third try after 36 minutes and Davies converted.

Zebre did have some reward for their spirited work however and, on the stroke of half time, Dion Berryman darted over the whitewash – Luciano Orquera narrowly off target with the conversion.

Ospreys started the second half with the same ferocity that they began the first and Matavesi crossed for his second after four minutes.

However, there was a stay of execution for Zebre after the referee spotted a block in the build up.

The Welsh side were camped in Zebre territory but they were struggling to find a way through as the Italians stood firm in the face of pressure.

But it was all in vain as Baker picked up the ball just outside the 22 and bulldozed his way through to earn his side the bonus point, Davies on hand to add another conversion.

It was all Ospreys in the second period and they had another score after 67 minutes when Rhys Webb fended off the attention of several Zebre defenders to touch down on the line and Davies continued his impressive streak from the tee.

Zebre were down but still had fight left in their legs and a brilliant interception from Mirco Bergamasco inside his own 22 saw him run the length of the field to dot down and then split the uprights with his kick to make it 41-15.

However, a penalty try for Ospreys two minutes later and a Dan Biggar conversion restored the sizable advantage before Hanno Dirksen got in on the act with a try of his own.

Zebre were still scrapping for tries and Alberto Chillon capitalised on some poor Ospreys defending to scramble over – Bergamasco on target again for the night's final score.

The scorers:

For Ospreys:

Tries: Baker 2, Matavesi, Baldwin, Webb, Penalty try, Dirksen

Cons: Davies 5, Biggar

Pens: Davies 2

For Zebre:

Tries: Berryman, Toniolatti, Chillon

Cons: Bergamasco 2

Pen: Garcia

Yellow card: Michele Visentin (Zebre, 71)

Teams:

Ospreys: 15 Dan Evans, 14 Tom Grabham, 13 Jonathan Spratt, 12 Josh Matavesi, 11 Hanno Dirksen, 10 Sam Davies, 9 Tom Habberfield, 8 Dan Baker, 7 Justin Tipuric (captain), 6 James King, 5 Tyler Ardron, 4 Lloyd Peers, 3 Aaron Jarvis, 2 Scott Baldwin, 1 Ryan Bevington.

Replacements: 16 Scott Otten, 17 Nicky Smith, 18 Dmitri Arhip, 19 Alun Wyn Jones, 20 Dan Lydiate, 21 Rhys Webb, 22 Dan Biggar, 23 Ben John.

Zebre: 15 Guglielmo Palazzani, 14 Dion Berryman, 13 Mirco Bergamasco, 12 Gonzalo Garcia, 11 Giulio Toniolatti, 10 Luciano Orquera, 9 Brendon Leonard, 8 Samuela Vunisa, 7 Filippo Cristiano, 6 Valerio Bernabò, 5 Marco Bortolami (captain), 4 Quintin Geldenhuys, 3 Luca Redolfini, 2 Oliviero Fabiani, 1 Andrea De Marchi.

Replacements: 16 Andrea Manici, 17 Luciano Leibson, 18 Lorenzo Romano, 19 Jacopo Sarto, 20 Filippo Ferrarini, 21 Alberto Chillon, 22 Matteo Pratichetti, 23 Michele Visentin.

Referee: George Clancy

Assistant referees: Neil Hennessy, Jonathan Hardy

TMO: Gareth Simmonds