Back in 2015 Andy Robinson’s Bristol suffered one of the most painful playoff defeats in recent history after conceding 14 points in the last seven minutes.
Bristol had a 16-30 lead over Worcester in the second leg of the Championship final at Six Ways and a 13-point advantage on aggregate when they spectacularly threw it away late on.
The visitors conceded a penalty try off a rolling maul meaning they were reduced to 14 men with less than five minutes on the clock, but instead of wasting time or kicking for territory, Bristol attempted to play expansive rugby which gifted Worcester possession.
The hosts then got into Bristol’s red zone where scrum half Dwayne Peel was sent to the sin bin for a cynical foul, leaving Bristol with just 13 players to hold out Worcester in the final minute.
Eventually following a scrum five metres out it was Worcester’s full back Chris Pennell who crossed the try line and after Ryan Lamb slotted the conversion with the final kick of the match, Worcester had pulled off a miracle and gained promotion to the Premiership with a 59-58 aggregate win.
It was the fourth time in six years that Bristol had failed to gain promotion to the Premiership having topped the league table during the regular season.
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