Connacht come good to keep European season alive

When it mattered, Connacht produced the goods and their European hopes are still intact as they trounced 14-man Bristol Bears 27-10.

The four-try-to-one victory was easily their best performance of the season and saw Pete Wilkins' men leapfrog the visitors into fourth place in Pool 1.

With Saracens hosting Lyon tomorrow evening and needing just two points to move into the final qualification place, it is unlikely to be enough for Champions Cup rugby but the fifth-place team in the pools drops down to the round of 16 in the Challenge Cup.

But having lost their opening three games and taken just a point from those, progress to the secondary competition was a stated target and was duly accomplished on a freezing night at the newly christened Dexcom Stadium.

Returning former Connacht boss Pat Lam will have cause to be deeply unhappy with his side's showing and it became clear after the early exchanges that they’d rather be anywhere else than in a freezing stadium on the edge of the Atlantic.

Shayne Bolton, Jack Aungier, Caolin Blade and man of the match Andrew Smith scored the tries as Connacht, with just their second win in eight games, gave the home crowd a much-needed boost and feelgood factor until their next outing – against Cardiff away in mid-February in the URC.

As two of eight changes, the hosts recalled Ireland internationals Bundee Aki and Finlay Bealham, who were rested for last weekend's defeat away to Lyon, while Blade and Tiernan O’Halloran returned from injury.

Bristol, meanwhile, had 2016 Connacht’s Pro12-winning half-back pairing Kieran Marmion and AJ MacGinty in their match-day squad.

They made five changes to the side surprisingly beaten at home by the Bulls last weekend, with England prop Kyle Sinckler and