Bath beat Leicester with last-minute try

Former Worcester hooker Ted Hill scored his second try in two matches for Bath

Will Butt scored a last-minute try as Bath came from behind to beat Leicester 19-18 at the Recreation Ground.

Orlando Bailey and Freddie Burns traded penalties after the break before Butt dived over as the clock went red.

The victory means Bath have won three consecutive league matches for the first time since February 2021.

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After a slow start to the season, Bath now move up to seventh in the Premiership, level on points with the defending champions one place above them.

Leicester's last two league matches have been cancelled and their lack of game time in the last month showed as they conceded a penalty from the off when Ollie Lawrence broke their line, which Bailey subsequently kicked to the posts.

Bath's lead was short-lived as the Tigers hit back from their first spell in possession, building through the phases from which Nadolo found space outside.

Still, the home side came into the match on the back of confidence-inducing wins against Northampton and Newcastle and a bolstered line-up that had a distinct Worcester flavour, with five ex-Warriors in the starting XV. Lawrence and Hill made try-saving tackles to deny Harry Potter and Harry Wells as Leicester dialled up the pressure, and Burns kicked another three points.

Bath reduced the deficit on the counter, with Hill evading a tackle to accelerate over for his second try in two matches.

But while Leicester continued to dominate, their attack didn't quite flow as Potter saw two chances go begging, including a knock-on over the line, before Cronin finally touched down from a driving maul on half-time.

The defending champions' form has been inconsistent this season and Bath capitalised, forcing handling errors and winning the battle at the scrum, before Bailey's second penalty moved them to within four points with 10 minutes to go.

Former Bath winger Anthony Watson seemed to all but secure the win for Leicester, making a remarkable turn and interception to prevent a pass reaching Butt that would have seen him over.

Yet when Bath won another scrum penalty and kicked to touch for a last-ditch line-out, Butt didn't miss with the final play and touched down in the corner to continue Bath's resurgence under Johann van Graan.

Bath: Shillcock, Butt, Joseph, Lawrence, Gallagher, Bailey, Spencer; Morozov, Annett, Rae, Lee-Warner, Roux, Hill, Reid, De Carpentier.

Replacements: Dunn, Cordwell, Jonker, Ellis, Bayliss, Green, Redpath, White.

Leicester Tigers: Watson, Ashton, Potter, Scott, Nadolo, Burns, Wigglesworth; Cronin, Clare, Cole, Wells, Green, Martin, Liebenberg, Cracknell.

Replacements: Cowan-Dickie, Van Wyk, Hurd, Snyman, Jansen, Edwards, Atkinson, Cokanasiga.

Referee: Tom Foley.