Ellis Genge praised for wonder try as Bristol Bears boss gives verdict on Louis Rees-Zammit
Ellis Genge praised for wonder try as Bristol Bears boss gives verdict on Louis Rees-Zammit
Bristol Bears boss Pat Lam was full of praise for his side after their impressive victory over Harlequins at Allianz Stadium on Saturday.
In front of a packed-out Twickenham crowd, the West Country boys finally got their ‘Bristanbul’ revenge, running in six tries in their 14-40 bonus-point win over the former Prem champions.
Two players that really stood out were Ellis Genge, the England loosehead prop, and Louis Rees-Zammit, the Welsh flyer. Both stars had plenty of the ball, notching up an impressive 26 carries between them.
The prop and the winger, despite playing on the opposite ends of the rugby spectrum, both got on the scoresheet with similar efforts. They collected the ball on the right-hand side of the pitch with 50 metres of space in front of them. The only real difference was that Genge elected to charge over the covering full-back Nick David, while Rees-Zammit chose to chip him.
Speaking to the press after the match, Genge said: “I couldn’t feel my legs at the end of it! It’s not every day I run that far to score a try.
“But I saw a gap and just put my head down and ran. I was definitely never going to pass it, but I don’t suppose it will ever happen again!”
He then added: “Not a bad Christmas present, is it! A big win and a try like that! It was a great team performance.
“We feel we have something very good happening at the club, and our hard work in training is coming to fruition. We finished things off in Europe in good style, and now we’re up there near the top in the league, and building some momentum.”
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Praise from the boss
Bristol boss Lam was full of praise for his try scorers, saying: “That’s Ellis at his best. He’s hard to stop in that mood. He is such a weapon for us, and his try was typical of him, seeing the opportunity and gap and putting his head down and charging through.
“But I was pleased with the whole team. We set about it in the right, positive manner and had the game under control by half-time.
“It’s a nice way to start the Prem games again and puts us right near the top. We now need to build on it.”
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Genge is Bristol born and bred, so his quality has never been in doubt among the locals, but Rees-Zammit is a new boy to the scene after his two-year sabbatical from the sport.
But Lam doesn’t believe he’s missed a beat.
“Louis has fitted in really well after returning from his NFL spell in the States,” complimented Lam.
“He’s an outstanding lad who can switch from wing to full-back, where he played tonight. He can do special things, and that’s what he did here with his try.”
