Bath coach Sir Ian McGeechan praised the character of his players following their 16-13 home win over Montpellier.
We worked well under pressure says coach
Bath coach Sir Ian McGeechan paid tribute to the character of his players following their 16-13 Heineken Cup victory over Montpellier.
McGeechan admitted that Bath had let the French club back into the game after the break but said his side had coped well under pressure in the second half to hold out for the win.
"We showed in the first half the rugby we can play. Some poor execution let them in a bit, but the character the players showed in the second half pleased me," he said.
"We didn't panic as a team and we worked well under pressure.
"We looked two yards quicker as a team than we were last week, which got us the advantage we needed at key times in the first half."
New Zealand World Cup hero Stephen Donald marked his first appearance in a Bath shirt with a man-of-the-match performance, setting up both of his side's tries and booting two penalties.
The fly-half, who kicked the winning points for the All Blacks in the World Cup final last month, knew the result was crucial if the West Country outfit were to keep their Heineken cup hopes alive.
Challenge
After losing away to Glasgow last weekend, Bath couldn't afford a second successive defeat that would have seen them facing elimination in the pool stages.
"We knew if we didn't get the result today, we would be making up the numbers," Donald said.
"We played poorly in the second half, but they are a very good French team and we can look at it positively in that we hung on.
"Learning how to win these kind of games is half the thing of it. It was a tough loss against Glasgow last weekend - we stuffed it up.
"I love the concept of the Heineken Cup. We play Leinster next, and what is not to get excited about playing against the defending champions and half the Irish team? I can't wait for it."
McGeechan, however, said his side's next match against the reigning champions would be a very different challenge to Sunday's win over the Heineken Cup newcomers.
He added: "Leinster will be tough. They are used to winning in Europe now, they won pretty comfortably (against Glasgow) today, and we know it will be a really good challenge for us."
