Bath moved to the top of the English Premiership with a crushing 45-0 win over the Leicester Tigers at the Recreation Ground.

Perennial contenders in the Premiership, Leicester were comprehensively outplayed, shipping in five tries while drawing a blank at the other end of the field.

To make matters worse, replacement scrumhalf David Mele was sent off during the closing stages by referee Wayne Barnes for stamping.

The victory kept Bath one point ahead of Saracens, who needed a last-minute Billy Vunipola try to get past London Irish.

In other results, Sale picked up their first win of the season as Danny Cipriani inspired them to a 46-8 win over London Welsh, Northampton rebounded from last weekend's loss to brush aside Newcastle 35-10, Exeter narrowly edged Gloucester to move into the top four, while Harlequins overcame a half-time deficit and a late Charlie Matthews yellow card to see off Wasps 26-23 and move into the top half of the table.

Round 3 results

Bath 45 Leicester Tigers 0
London Irish 32 Saracens 36
Harlequins 26 Wasps 23
Sale Sharks 46 London Welsh 8
Newcastle Falcons 10 Northampton Saints 35

Photo: Dan Mullan/Getty Images