Given their pedigree and squad, Bath should not be fighting for scraps in the basement of the Premiership, and they had too much class for lacklustre London Irish, running in four tries to none.
But there the congratulations must end. Irish were so disjointed and unconvincing that Bath should have given a much more splendid and less error-prone performance.
Spring sunshine flooded the Rec and three tries by the home side illuminated a first half characterised by solid endeavour and frequent error.
Rhys Priestland had a hand in all of them. But it would be a mistake to salute his performance as brilliant. It was hit and miss, like so much of the play from both sides.
The first two tries were both provided in part by Priestland and scored on the wide left by Matt Banahan. But the absence of any meaningful defence by London Irish made them all too easy.
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Number three, just before the interval, was really well worked and deserved. Kyle Eastmond, whose flat, accurate passing was a notable feature throughout the match, found Priestland in space on the right side of midfield. Priestland in turn found Banahan, who had come across from the left and went for his hat-trick.
When he realised that he could not quite make it in the corner, Banahan slipped a cute pass inside to Semesa Rokoduguni, who was able to squeeze the ball to the turf before clattering the corner flag. It took several replays before the television match official agreed with the crowd and awarded the try.
London Irish huffed and puffed during the opening spell, and largely held their own up front. But their attacks had no thrust and were easily forced sideways by the Bath defence. Indeed, Irish had only two brief positive periods: the first five minutes and the final four, by which time it was all too late. Scott Steele and Blair Cowan, the Scotland flanker who came on just after the first quarter, both laboured bravely in a lost cause.
Bath secured their bonus point with a fourth try that ended a long, energetic attack and that was essentially made by Eastmond. His long pass was so good that its recipient, Leroy Houston, had only to take a couple of steps forwards and fall over the line.
For most of the second half, which was inferior as a spectacle to even the first half, Irish played like doomed men. They offered no threat until, bizarrely, the 80 minutes was up. Tom Coventry’s side then proceeded to sustain an attack for several minutes, concluding with a try out on the right by Alex Lewington.
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That gave Greig Tonks, the replacement outside half, the chance to grab an undeserved bonus point. His conversion kick hit the post and Irish, yet again, went away with absolutely nothing.
Star man: Kyle Eastmond (Bath)
Bath: Homer; Rokoduguni, Devoto. Eastmond, Banahan (Agulla 63min); Priestland (Clark 69min), Cook (Evans 72min), Lahiff (Obano 72min), Webber (Dunn 63min), Thomas (Wilson 53min), Ewels , Day (Hooper 28min), Garvey, Louw (capt) (Evans 65min), Mafi
London Irish: Maitland; Lewington, Hearn (Mulchrone h-t), Williams, Ojo; Brophy Clews (Tonks 50min), Steele (Allinson 72min); Smallbone (Court 54min)., Paice (Cruse 66min), Aulika (Halavatau 54min), Symons, Stooke, Nagle (Cowan 22min), Narraway (capt), McCusker (Sexton 57min)
