Hooker Mears relishes Tigers test

Mears takes the game to Saracens in Bath's 33-18 home win

Bath hooker Lee Mears is undaunted by a Premiership play-off trip to Leicester after his side booked their semi-final spot with a 33-18 win against Saracens.

"Our goal all year was to make the play-offs. In days gone by you wanted to be first but now we know that isn't the goal," he told BBC Radio Bristol.

"You'd like a home semi-final, but we'll take whatever we get.

"We've had some good battles against Leicester this year so hopefully it will make another great spectacle."

Bath scored tries against Saracens through Andrew Higgins, Peter Short and Matt Banahan, but a fourth would have seen them earn a bonus point and a trip to Harlequins instead of Leicester.

"All the other teams around us got those four tries and it could have been Harlequins, but that's the way of things," Bath head coach Steve Meehan said.

It will be the fifth time the teams have met this season, and the Tigers hold the head-to-head advantage going into the 9 May date at the Walkers Stadium with three wins.

They won the EDF Cup group game at The Rec and also prevailed at home in the Premiership and the Heineken Cup, while Bath won their home game in the league.

606: DEBATE

Out of all of the teams we could have faced i would rather have gone to the Walkers Stadium to face them as I think we can beat them

bathmadun

But there has been less than a score between the teams in all four games, with Leicester winning the most recent meeting 20-15 in the quarter-finals of the Heineken Cup at the Walkers Stadium with a last-minute try from Julien Dupuy.

Meehan added: "We still have that defeat in the back of our heads. It's a memory that's still fresh and we're pretty bitter about and it's a good place for us to go."

England international and Lions tourist Mears said: "Winning by fine margins [is all that matters] in finals and semi-finals and hopefully we'll be on the right end this time.

"Leicester have such great strength in depth. They'll be tough but hopefully we can do a job."