BRISTOL interim head coach Mark Tainton promised his side would keep fighting to the end after an agonising 38-34 defeat by Exeter at Sandy Park.

Bristol put in a performance of huge spirit and it was rough justice on them that they came away with only two points, after being beaten by a Thomas Waldrom try four minutes from the end.

However, those two points narrowed the gap between themselves and 11th-placed Worcester to eight points, and with only three games remaining, they face a monumental task if they are to avoid relegation from the Premiership.

Gavin Henson scored 19 points for Bristol with a try, three penalties and four conversions. Jason Woodward, Will Hurrell and Mitch Eadie also scored tries.

Tainton said: "We were minutes away from a famous victory as the players put in a hell of a shift and our defence was magnificent.

"When they scored an early try, it looked it could be a long afternoon but I'm frustrated that we didn't get the win.

"It's getting more and more difficult to avoid relegation but the boys aren't going to give in and we are hoping for a big crowd at Ashton Gate next Sunday against Wasps."

Bristol captain, Marc Jones, echoed his coach's views and said: "We are extremely disappointed to lose when we were ahead by such a margin (24-10) but Exeter showed great character and seem to be able to grind out the wins.

"We have three games against tough opposition but there's no reason why we shouldn't get a couple of wins if we put in a performance like that.

"We came down with a game plan and executed it well. You've got to make it personal down here as you don't want to be on the end of a stuffing.

"We picked up a couple of opportunist tries and not many teams get two points away at Sandy Park."