John Connolly's final match at The Rec was never going to be a celebration of rugby because he's not created a team capable of such a feat. Instead over the past two years the likeable Aussie has developed a pack powerful enough to beat up the rest of the Premiership but little else. The performance against Leeds was (ironically) the pinnacle of Connolly's back play, the worst it has ever been! I saw our players running around the pitch but rarely in the same direction, with the same play in mind or with the ability to break a tackle or beat a defender. This was rugby by numbers, unfortunately however the Bath team is currently numerically challenged with few of their calculations adding up correctly. If he'd been watching this pile of pap, Pythagoras would have to think up a new theorem!

 I, like so many others, was desperate for JC2 to leave our City with the cheers of a winning crowd echoing in his ears but this match was so bad that everyone was keen to leave the scene of the crime as quickly as possible. It was one of those games which sucked the passion out of every bone in your body and you couldn't therefore be bothered to reflect on what went wrong. 

Losing is not the end of the world, providing it doesn't become a habit, but playing rugby like newcomers to the game against the bottom team in the Premiership gives the word "disappointing" new meaning. I hope there is more than one player in the team last night who will shuffle with embarrassment as they open their very generous pay slip at the end of this month. In other walks of life one may consider inefficiency action against those who failed to do their job effectively.

It is too easy to blame the coaches for the current state of backs play. What about the players? Most of them will have been playing at a competitive level for nigh on ten years and if they don't know how to play by now then I suggest they find themselves a new way of earning a living. It doesn't take Einstein to calculate that, if you are playing against a team with a defence spread across the pitch in a line with two players acting as sweepers, constantly running in to them will result in tackle after tackle after tackle, with no ground gained. This isn't Rugby League for God's sake where once the tackle is made the defenders have to let go and give the attacking side the opportunity to play again! In Rugby Union the trick is quick ball recycling and having the skill to beat a man through skill and guile not just bish, bash, bosh.

Chris Malone will without doubt bear much of the criticism and, to be fair, he had a 'mare in this game. His normally solid kicking was flaky, he couldn't pass water let alone the ball in the direction of a colleague and he never looked like making anything happen. However it's too easy to blame one bloke, there were 14 others who have to hold up their hands and say "sorry" to all of us who froze our butts off watching this rubbish.

Why we've spent money on Dixon as a hooker when we've two youngsters waiting in the wings to support Mearsy is beyond my comprehension. I can't see what he adds to our game. His lineout throwing is on a par with Banjo and you could hardly accuse him of getting stuck in and making things happen with the ball. In contrast when young Ward played last year we had an extra flanker. The trouble is the club imports these expensive players from home and abroad and to make the money men happy they have to be picked. How many other clubs' games do you watch on TV or read about in the papers where you suddenly see the names of exciting young players developed at Bath who've had to move on because they couldn't get a game? Too many in my opinion. I'd rather give up the quest for immediate success to support the younger local players in their development by letting them play every week and restrict the number of "experienced" external players to one or two. Let's face it, they're hardly pulling rabbits from hats at present are they? The trouble is your average fan wants to win one trophy today and sod tomorrow whereas I'd rather win three trophies in three years' time knowing we have a squad capable of winning even more.

What can one say about the game itself? We dominated possession for much of the first half yet managed to go in 12-13 down following some shoddy defence by Stephenson to allow Snyman in for the only try of the game. Michael, a word of advice: this isn't touch rugby where you slap the arse of an opponent to make him give up the ball you actually have to wrap your arms around his body. Bath did nothing in the second half to convince me that they were ever going to score a try, despite numerous attacking opportunities. Watching Bath was like watching a group of kids play tag. "You're on it, no I'm on it, no he's on it." Hang on a moment, does anyone actually know what we're doing?

Lee Best was the only back to consistently make ground, Danny Grewcock always looks dangerous with the ball but has a limit of five yards so needs support and Andy Beattie made a couple of nice breaks but again lacked support. Higgins again looked lightweight (to these untrained eyes) and has as much chance of breaking through a defence as I have of being a Pulitzer Prize Winner.

It would be easy to blame the referee for his total incompetence, you do know the ball has to go backwards don't you Mr Debney? However he failed to deliver for both teams so I can't complain.

Well Mr Ashton you have one hell of a job ahead of you, good luck!

Bath: Best, Maddock, Higgins, Crockett, Stephenson, Malone, Williams, Barnes, Dixon, Bell, Fidler, Grewcock, Beattie, Scaysbrook, Fea'unati. Replacements: Hawkins, Loader, Delve, Lipman, Baxter, Davis, Welsh.

Leeds: De Marigny, Snyman, Vickerman, Jones, Doherty, Ross, Marshall, Lensing, Rawlinson, Gerber, Hooper, Morgan, Dunbar, Parks, Crane. Replacements: Cusack, Bulloch, Reid, Hyde, Care, Palmer, McMillan.

Referee: Rob Debney (Leicestershire)

Att: 9,957

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