Bristol beaten by Stormers in Champions Cup opener

In their first Champions Cup match of the season, Bristol Bears were defeated by South African team Stormers. Senatla scored the opening try for Stormers followed by Zas who used exceptional technique to score a try with a boot pass. Joe Owen managed to score for Bristol, but Stormers quickly regained their 14-point lead with a try by Roche.

Stormers' hooker, Kotze, received a 20-minute red card for making contact with the head during a tackle with Bristol's captain, Marmion. The Bears had moments of pressure, especially when they had only 14 players due to the sin-binning of Zas. When Stormers had only 13 players, Bristol managed to reduce their deficit with a touch down by Sol Moody.

However, the lead was regained when Roche scored his second try. The match ended with Stormers scoring two more tries and Zas adding a third late, securing a bonus point. South Africa fly-half, Feinberg-Mngomezulu, converted all of his side's seven tries. Bristol's next Champions Cup fixture is against Munster on 12th December, followed by matches against Racing 92 and Bordeaux in January.