Bath are into the Premiership final for the first time in nine years but they are not a team who give their supporters an easy ride. At times it was Sale who looked the side most likely to meet Northampton at Twickenham next Saturday, only for a 74th-minute try from Niall Annett and 16 points from the boot of Finn Russell to keep Bath on track for the promised land.
Maybe it was the nerves associated with such a big occasion but not until the closing couple of minutes could home fans remotely relax. It is 28 years since their favourites were last crowned champions of England and the huge outpouring of joy at the final whistle showed exactly what this result meant to everyone connected with the club.
