Where to watch Bath vs La Rochelle
You can watch Bath vs La Rochelle on Premier Sports 1 at 8pm on Friday.
Match prediction & best bet
La Rochelle
2pts 13-8 Ladbrokes
Bath vs La Rochelle predictions
Head coach Ronan O’Gara angrily called on his La Rochelle team to produce a reaction after last week’s shock home defeat to Top 14 basement-dwellers Vannes, and he may well get it on a wet and windy night in Bath.
The French side lifted the trophy in 2022 and 2023 and their success was based on their tough, physical approach led by a powerhouse pack.
Those ingredients should set them up for a strong performance at Bath, where rain and winds gusting up to 40mph are forecast. The bad weather looks likely to deliver a stop-start contest in which the visitors can turn the screw at the set-piece and keep a tight lid on the game.
Bath have a dangerous backline conduced by world-class fly-half Finn Russell but in the forecast conditions a pragmatic, territorial game is the order of the day and that’s where La Rochelle can step up.
Saturday’s home defeat was a third loss in four Top 14 games for La Rochelle but they have a strong record in Europe and especially against Premiership opposition.
Last season they beat Leicester 45-12 at home and won 37-24 at Sale Sharks, the previous season they beat Northampton home and away, while the year before that they faced Bath and were 39-0 up before the hour mark, eventually winning 39-21.
The return leg at the Rec couldn’t be played that year as Covid caused upheaval to the schedule, but La Rochelle get their chance to visit the famous West Country ground on Friday and look good value to come away with a win.
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Published on 5 December 2024inRugby Union tips
Last updated 15:38, 5 December 2024
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