Unfortunately, we didn't get going in the first half and Bath deserved to be 24-6 in front at half-time. Naturally, a few words were said at the break and I was pleased with the way the boys responded.

There's a huge amount of potential in this side and, not for the first time this season, we could have come away with something. Mike Brown finished off a sweeping move to put us back in the match but after Bath scored again, we were left to play catch-up.

Credit to the team though, who fought back again through Nick Easter's try but then had Will Skinner's effort five minutes from time ruled out, somewhat harshly, for trying to play the ball after the tackle. That was compounded by Nick receiving a second yellow card for his complaints and that basically summed up our day.

Despite the disappointing result, there were some plus points to take from the performance. I thought the boys kept at it well and although we let the referee get to us at times, we shrugged it to one side and started to play some decent rugby.

The result means that Bath have closed in on us with 30 points in the table as we enter the two-week break for the Six Nations Championship. When we return though, we have some tough tests awaiting us starting with a trip to Northampton (Saturday 17th February), who are fighting for their lives, and a home game with high-flying Bristol (Saturday 24th February).

Talking of the Six Nations, it's been a mixed weekend for England as they prepare for the visit of Scotland to Twickenham on Saturday.

Our game on Saturday saw Bath field Lions prop Matt Stevens for his first match in 10 months since undergoing surgery to his shoulder. The fact he got through it unscathed will be a huge boost to coach Brian Ashton.

At the same time Jonny Wilkinson was making a return for Newcastle and there is bound to be a lot of talk now as to how ready he is to return to the international set-up. That has to be his decision, but to bring him back too soon could have disastrous consequences.

The bad news for Brian this weekend was the serious knee injury sustained by Bristol number eight Dan Ward-Smith in their match against Northampton. Dan has been in great form this season and I'm sure he was set to start against Scotland on Saturday. He now faces an agonising spell out on the sidelines and I wish him all the best.

Copy courtesy of City AM.