Richards -“Easy points cost us dear”
Four tries in the first 44 minutes were enough to secure all five Aviva Premiership points, Newcastle Falcons’ director of rugby admitting: “Bath won at a canter, four tries to one. We clung in there but easy points cost us dear.”
Shipping three tries in the first half, Richards said: “We started slowly, as we have done most of the season, and just before half-time we gave away a soft try
“We repeated that after half-time when Matt Banahan scored, and they were probably the killer moments in the game.
“Other than that we were competitive throughout but you have got to do that for 80 minutes, and we are not at the moment.
“The other thing is our try-scoring has dried up a bit due to our inability to get into our attacking shape on a regular basis.
“Whether that is down to work-rate, decision-making or a combination of the two, we are just not getting there at this moment in time.”
Sinoti Sinoti had the 7,492 inside Kingston Park on his feet when he danced his way to the line for a super solo try, Richards saying: “On the positive side Sinoti scored a lovely try.
“That was an outstanding finish but, to be honest, the softness of the tries we conceded was the most concerning factor. That simply can’t carry on.”
Refusing to blame refereeing decisions or the rub of the green, he added: “You can say little things make a big difference, but it was actually the big things in this game.
“We didn’t make one-on-one tackles as well as we should have done, that gave them ground every time but I have to say I thought George Ford and their other England backs were outstanding.
“Jonathan Joseph and Anthony Watson were really sharp, and it is a real challenge to play against a side with that amount of class.
“We hung in there, but even when we went 13-12 up I felt a little bit lucky to be there.
“It was a tough second half and we only got ourselves into gear for certain parts of it. Those two or three minutes after half-time killed us.”
