Dai Young admitted Wasps were fortunate to come away from the Recreation Ground with a losing bonus point after being beaten by Bath.
Wasps boss relieved at stroke of fortune against Bath
Wasps director of rugby Dai Young admitted his side were fortunate to come away from the Recreation Ground with a losing bonus point after their 17-12 defeat to Bath.
That point was gifted to them by Bath replacement fly-half Sam Vesty, who was tackled by Tom Varndell while prematurely celebrating what would have been Bath's fourth try two minutes from time.
It leaves Newcastle with a much more difficult task when the Aviva Premiership's two bottom teams meet in a relegation showdown at Adams Park on May 5, with the Falcons needing a sizeable win while denying Wasps a bonus point.
"We just have to win. It's in our hands. Basically, if Newcastle come and win by that margin they deserve to stay up. Let's be honest about it," Young said.
"If we don't win our own game and the other team win by 24 points, we have to look at ourselves really."
Wasps had been 9-0 in front at half-time and looked to be on course to ensure their safety beyond all doubt, but Bath scored three second-half tries to turn the tables completely.
Simple
"First half we kept it simple. We were in control and we needed a very strong second half, especially the first 20 (minutes)," Young said.
"We talked at half-time about not becoming ragged or loose. Bath have got a lot of strike runners and if you give them space and loose ball, they are going to cause you problems. That's exactly what happened.
"We gave them a chance to get their tails up. They're a quality team - everyone knows that.
"I'm disappointed with our first 20 minutes in the second half which caused us all sorts of problems and got Bath back in front.
"But in the end we have to say we were quite lucky to come away with a losing bonus point."
Bath's outgoing director of rugby, Sir Ian McGeechan, made no secret of the fact that he wants Wasps to stay in the top-flight but said that Vesty was extremely embarrassed by the way he influenced the fight for survival.
Apologies
McGeechan said: "It's going to be one hell of a game in two weeks. I hope Wasps win. Sam's been apologising ever since,"
The error from Vesty has all but extinguished Bath's hopes of Heineken Cup qualification in a decidedly mixed season.
"Five points today would have been very good. But we've got a lot of things right here - I know some people may not think that," McGeechan said.
"Sometimes it's been the ball going the wrong side of a post which has cost us four wins."
He added of the game with Wasps: "We were just more accurate in the second half. We carried with real venom, got into the phases, stayed accurate and then we were always a threat."
