Rugby / Bristol Bears
Lam makes a winning return to Connacht
Pat Lam returned to one of his old stomping grounds in Connacht to see his Bristol Bears side beat his former team 18-27.
The Bristol Bears director of rugby was in Galway from 2013 to 2017, from where he made the move across the Irish Sea to Ashton Gate.
Bristol’s hard-fought bonus-point win in the Heineken Champions Cup on Sunday evening means that qualification for the quarter-finals of the competition is still possible.
The first half in Connacht was a battle of attrition which ended 5-3, before a much more entertaining second period.
Bristol’s tries on Sunday evening were scored by Ben Byrne, Ed Holmes, Piers O’Conor and Ioan Lloyd, with one penalty and two conversions by Callum Sheedy.
Ioan Lloyd scored Bristol’s bonus-point try when he dived over the line in the right-hand corner nine minutes from time – photo: JMP
“I’m really pleased,” said Lam. “That’s our first Champions Cup win for many years and what an effort…
“It wasn’t perfect but it was a gutsy effort particularly up front.”
Lam said that the Champions Cup “is the best competition in the world. We’ve gone strong and we’ve got a lot of players coming back too.
“So we know that all that we can control is to get four, five (points) next time and then see what happens.”
Next time there will be Bears fans at Ashton Gate, with Bristol dropping down to tier two meaning that 2,000 fans will be able to return to the stadium on January 1 to watch the visit of Newcastle in the Gallagher Premiership.
Ben Earl celebrates former Leinster front row Ben Byrne’s first-half try – photo: JMP
Main photo: JMP
Read more: Bristol Bears’ new European adventure begins
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