Bowen ruins Rotherham's big day

Rotherham contra mundum; the effort expended by the South Yorkshire club to rub the up-turned nose of the world of rugby in the dirt was prodigious. That it was also, ultimately, inadequate may not bode well for the Premiership newcomers because Bristol, while never intimidated by a raucous crowd, were poor in thought and downright sloppy in execution.

Rotherham contra mundum; the effort expended by the South Yorkshire club to rub the up-turned nose of the world of rugby in the dirt was prodigious. That it was also, ultimately, inadequate may not bode well for the Premiership newcomers because Bristol, while never intimidated by a raucous crowd, were poor in thought and downright sloppy in execution.

The consolation for Rotherham is that they proved that, in the lower reaches at least, they will be competitive.

Given the result it was doubly unfortunate for the club that the occasion did not receive the spectacle it deserved, for which much of the blame must be laid at the door of the referee, Ashley Rowden. A pedantic refusal to play advantage resulted in 32 penalties, and while the fact that all the first-half points came from the boot could imply a lack of intent to run the ball, the opposite was the case. Both Rotherham and Bristol looked to spread the play, if only as far as the inside centre, only to be pulled up time and again.

It was also the result of some furious Rotherham defence, summed up after half an hour, when Bristol recycled the ball five times in the Rotherham 22, a passage of play which ended when Bristol's Welsh under-21 international stand-off Gareth Bowen was caught standing still and driven back 10 yards.

The packs were similarly well matched; after a tentative opening the home team secured more than their fair share of ball and the try, when it came early in the second half, was no more than they deserved. Made by the forwards in a series of close drives, the decisive half-break was made by the scrum-half Dave Scully, whose inside pass saw No 8 Isaac Fea'unati driven over from 10 yards.

With more experience that might have been that, but Agustin Pichot's alert reaction in taking a quick tap on his own 10-yard line gave him the space to break the first line of defence. Cutting inside at the end of a weaving run, the Bristol captain found Eduardo Simone, whose long pass bounced fortunately for Dean Dewdney to beat the cover into the corner.

With such a whistle-happy referee further penalties were inevitable. Bowen had two opportunities, taking one, but Mike Umaga might still have rescued a draw; his attempt from a difficult angle four minutes into injury time was pulled left. Steve Cousins, Rotherham's director of rugby, was typically defiant in defeat. "People have been saying we couldn't play Premiership rugby; well, we just have. It's been a good day for us, because we'll improve."

Off the field the day was a triumph, helped immeasurably by the fact the sun shone. Temporary stands - some more temporary than others - ensured Rotherham can seat, if not shelter, more than 1,500, and once the cricket season is over in a month's time, the capacity will be close to 7,500.

Rotherham: Tries Fea'unati; Penalties Umaga 5. Bristol: Try Dewdney; Penalties Bowen 6.

Rotherham: M Umaga; M Dawson, A Northey, J Shepherd, N Simpson (M Wood, 74); S Binns, D Scully; S Bunting (J Thorpe 70), C Johnson, S Turner, C Murphy, H Parr, R Earnshaw,N Spence (B Wade, 70), I Fea'unati.

Bristol: L Best; D Rees, E Simone, L Davis, D Dewdney; G Bowen, A Pichot (capt); L Gerrard (P Johnstone,h-t), B Williams, D Crompton, A Sheridan, D Ryan, M Salter (B Sturnham, 50), C Short (A Vander, h-t), J Brownrigg.

Referee: A Rowden (Berkshire).