London Irish - 22 Bath - 24If it is notoriously risky to read too much into scrappy opening games, the return of Jack Rowell to Bath already seems to have brought his old club a change of luck. Last season they failed to register a single away win in the Zurich Premiership but yesterday brought success on the road at the first attempt, courtesy of a controversial penalty from Olly Barkley in the eighth minute of injury-time.

London Irish officials intend to study the video carefully to discover how the referee Roy Maybank managed to prolong a contest they thought had been settled when their outhalf Barry Everitt, who missed five penalty attempts, landed an 84th-minute drop-goal to put Irish briefly ahead, 22-21.

Irish claim the fourth official told them there would be only three additional minutes and were also aggrieved at the award of the last crucial penalty when their hooker Richard Kirke came around the side of a midfield ruck in the clear belief the referee had already signalled the ball out. A touch judge, however, advised Maybank to the contrary and the left-footed Barkley nailed the crucial kick from close to half-way.

A dismal game scarcely deserved such an exciting finale and the Exiles' director of rugby, Conor O'Shea, will write a report recommending the precise amount of time added be publicly announced. "I'll ask because there was somehow five extra minutes of injury-time in the last six minutes of the game," he said.

Irish did at least keep the ball in hand long enough to be awarded a 51st-minute penalty try and Everitt's fourth penalty put them 19-18 ahead with eight minutes of normal time left. Barkley, though, grabbed the initiative back with his sixth penalty in the 78th minute.

Belatedly, Everitt stifled the groans with a wonderfully-taken drop-goal from over 40 metres and O'Shea could barely believe the final twist.

LONDON IRISH: Horak; Sackey, Appleford, Hoadley, Rossouw; Everitt, Edwards; Hatley (Worsley, 48), Drotske (Kirke, 47), Halford (Hardwick, 47), Strudwick (capt), Casey, Gustard, Dawson (Danaher, 63), Sheasby. Scorers: Penalty try, B Everitt conversion, 4 pens, drop goal.

BATH: Barkley; Thirlby, Maggs, Crockett, Voyce; Malone, Blake; Barnes (Emms h-t), Humphreys (Mears, 63), Galasso, Beattie, Grewcock (capt), G Thomas, A Vander, N Thomas. Scorers: O Barkley 7 pens, C Malone drop goal.

Referee: R Maybank.