After a run of good luck, Bath Rugby FC continued its fortune by bringing home the silverware, following their victory over Wasps in the John Player Special Cup of April 1986. Points West was there to witness the game, which was marred sadly by a fracas between the two rival teams – the match referee even threatened to send off both sides' captains. The 1985/86 final had Bath struggling in the initial stages of the game as they faced Wasps’ lead of 13 points, despite demolishing Wasps in the scrum. But captain John Palmer missed two penalty chances and the opposition broke against the run of play. With a surge of effort from the left by Hill and Simpson, a run of four tries had the Bath side slamming Wasps' early lead. For Wasps, a further setback came after they lost their team's scrum half Steve Bates through injury. David Trick's conversions and a penalty kick brought Bath back to the fore, after which the second half was a succession of scrums on the Wasps' line, with the Bath pack completely dominant. Then, after Roger Spurrell, it was the turn of Richard Hill to make it straight through and bring the ball under the post. Finally, Paul Simpson secured Bath's win against Wasps, the game ending Bath 25, Wasps 17. After team captain John Palmer collected the cup, he told Points West about his reaction to Wasps early lead: "The first one was a bit worrying and the second one we thought we better start doing something. "It's when you know what you've got behind you and what they can do... we've had to step up a gear a few times this year... but we knew what we could do and we did it." Incredibly, Wasps were beaten again in the 1986/87 final, making it four successive wins for Bath. But the team's luck ran out when it was defeated by Mosely the following year. Their run of success fell victim to a 19-12 win by the Midlands team. Bath Rugby FC has proved its strength over the years. It won the English Cup Final at Twickenham no less than ten times, the last being in 1996. Bath legends from the 80s include, David Trick, Roger Spurrell, John Horton and Gareth Chilcott. More films from BBC Points West Use the right-hand links to other local Where I Live sites to see more archive film from Points West.
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