Spencer shone as four-try Bath became two-time EPCR Challenge Cup champions, beating Lyon Olympique Universitaire 37-12.
With fireworks as the backdrop as the two sides entered the field, and LOU’s start matched the heat. Pinning Bath to their own 22, the French side went at the English side from the get-go, with their pace soon rewarded.
Ethan Dumortier cleverly found space down the right to cross with barely two minutes on the clock. The forensic TMO that followed failed to soften the blow to Bath.
Kicked into action by the score and the deafening Blue and White army, Bath upped the tempo. Fuelled by the renowned Finn Russell-Ben Spencer half-back pairing, some defence-splitting runs and driving mauls had LOU camped just in front of the in-goal.
It was pressure that soon came good for Bath as prop Tom Dunn eventually drove one home for his fourth in three games.
It wasn’t long before Max Ojomoh added another for the English side as he twisted free on the left to create space to tap down.
LOU would’ve felt hard done by when Sam Underhill saw yellow instead of red in the final third of the half, but another sin-binned Bath player threatened to destabilise their lead as LOU looked to make the most of the two-man advantage.
And that’s precisely what they thought they’d done when Dumortier charged under the posts, only to be ruled out soon after.
HT: Bath Rugby 17-5 Lyon Olympique Universitaire.
A fast Finn Russell penalty after the break extended the English lead, but it was the perfect response from Lyon.
Arno Botha charged home for the French side’s second on 43 minutes, reducing an otherwise worrying deficit.
But it was a deficit soon to be added to, as Ben Obano bulldozed his way over on 50 minutes.
It was then Bath’s other Ben that sealed the deal when captain Spencer burst through the Lyon backline to finish off an impressive move under the posts, the cherry on top of an all-round stellar performance from the skipper.
A comfortable final 20 minutes ensued for the English side as their four tries had seen them into a commanding lead.
Scorers:
Bath Rugby: Tries: Tom Dunn, Max Ojomoh, Beno Obano, Ben Spencer. Conversions: Finn Russell (4). Penalties: Finn Russell (3).
Lyon Olympique Universitaire: Tries: Ethan Dumortier, Arno Botha. Conversion: Léo Berdeu.
Teams:
Bath Rugby: 15 Tom de Glanville, 14 Joe Cokanasiga, 13 Max Ojomoh, 12 Will Butt, 11 Will Muir, 10 Finn Russell, 9 Ben Spencer (c), 8 Miles Reid, 7 Sam Underhill, 6 Ted Hill, 5 Charlie Ewels, 4 Quinn Roux, 3 Will Stuart, 2 Tom Dunn, 1 Beno Obano. Replacements: 16 Niall Annett, 17 Francois van Wyk, 18 Thomas du Toit, 19 Ross Molony, 20 Guy Pepper, 21 Tom Carr-Smith, 22 Ciaran Donoghue, 23 Alfie Barbeary
Lyon Olympique Universitaire: 15 Davit Niniashvili, 14 Vincent Rattez, 13 Josiah Maraku, 12 Theo Millet, 11 Ethan Dumortier, 10 Léo Berdeu, 9 Baptiste Couilloud, 8 Arno Botha, 7 Beka Saginadze, 6 Dylan Cretin, 5 Mickael Guillard, 4 Theo William, 3 Jermaine Ainsley, 2 Camille Chat, 1 Jérôme Rey. Replacements: 16 Guillaume Marchand, 17 Hamza Kaabeche, 18 Irakli Aptsiauri, 19 Félix Lambey, 20 Liam Allen, 21 Maxime Gouzou, 22 Martin Page-Relo, 23 Martin Meliande.