BATH head coach Gary Gold pulled no punches after his side rolled over against Saracens in the Aviva Premiership on Saturday, claiming they saw it coming but could do nothing about it.

Bath have proved a formidable match for most this season but Sarries cruised to an impressive 22-0 win at the Rec on Saturday – the outstanding Charlie Hodgson kicking 17 points while Richard Wigglesworth scored the only try of the match.

And while Gold admitted he knew exactly the tactics Saracens would employ, he conceded Bath were powerless to stop them.

He said: “The question is where didn’t we fall short. Saracens were as good in every aspect of their game as we were poor.

“The lineout didn’t function, our kicking game didn’t function and a couple of defensive lapses we usually pride ourselves on.

“The small solace we can take is that we only conceded one try but Sarries are very good at what they do.

“They are three or four years down the line at playing these sorts of conditions and we certainly need to get a lot better at it.

“We were poor and it’s an embarrassing result.’’ Gold added: “I wasn’t surprised because we thought they would play (a kicking game), that’s how they play.

“They call it suffocate and strangle, and they do it very well. They deserve credit for how well they did it and the accuracy of their kicks was very good.

“They are going to put you under a lot of pressure and it’s a bit of a game of chess and we lost substantially.”

NEWS FROM BATH'S TRIP TO EXETER TOMORROW AT WILTSHIRETIMES.CO.UK/SPORT AND IN NEXT WEEK'S WILTSHIRE TIMES