SKIPPER Danny Grewcock was dismissed for the second time this season as Bath's hopes of lifting the Parker Pen Challenge Cup were blown away by swarming Wasps.

Grewcock saw red midway through the second half of a bruising, but one-sided Madejski Stadium final, after unleashing a ferocious flurry of punches on England teammate and Wasps skipper Lawrence Dallaglio, who was trapped at the bottom of a ruck near his own try line.

Referee Nigel Williams consulted with touch judge Nigel Whitehouse before giving Grewcock his marching orders his second red card this season, although a five-week ban was quashed last September when a RFU appeal panel ruled that he had not kicked Saracens scrum-half Kyran Bracken during a Zurich Premiership game.

A diplomatic Dallaglio later played down the incident, saying: "Playing against Bath in a European final was strange and it was always going to be a bit sparky.''

Of the incident, he added: "I don't really know what went on, but it was enough to send him off.

"Clearly, with the season Bath have had, there was a lot of frustration and it came out.

"I'd like him (Grewcock) on my team, that's for sure. Frustration can sometimes get the better of you.

"It was an unfortunate incident, but it didn't affect the outcome of the game. We were comfortable winners.''

The departure of Grewcock, who was handed a two-week ban last night, extinguished any hopes his side had of fighting their way back into a match in which they were blatantly second-best.

Certainly, the erratic performance of Welsh whistler Williams gave them some justifiable cause for complaint, the official's debatable interpretation of the offside rule allowing Wasps, directed by their wily Kiwi coach Warren Gatland, to stifle most of Bath's attacking intentions at an early stage.

But that still could not disguise the fact that the west country men had little answer to the power and thrust of their opponents, who ran in six tries and surely pose a serious threat to Gloucester in Sunday's Premiership Grand Final at Twickenham.

Significantly, it was an early Williams' decision to send Bath centre Kevin Maggs to the sin-bin for an apparent act of retaliation on Dallaglio at a ruck on nine minutes that shaped the match.

By the time the Irish international returned 10 minutes later, Bath's 3-0 lead from an Olly Barkley penalty had become a 17-3 deficit from which they never recovered.

Alex King, who levelled matters with a penalty, converted neat tries from Josh Lewsey and Fraser Waters and, on 23 minutes, made it three out of three when hooker Phil Greening intercepted a Barkley pass and raced 40 metres untouched.

Shell-shocked, Bath nevertheless showed the battling qualities they had needed so often this term and dragged themselves onto the fringe of contention at the interval.

Barkley dummied the entire Wasps backline to dart over near the posts and then added a penalty to make it 24-13 at the turnaround.

Needing to score first to really make a match of it in the second period, Bath instead leaked a fourth touchdown, although, by way of consolation, it did give them a glimpse of the talents of Rec-bound Wasps scrum-half Martyn Wood.

He sneaked around the edge of a ruck to side-step opposite number Gareth Cooper and twist out of another half-hearted tackle to go over.

King's boot added the extras, but Bath came back again as subs Lee Mears and James Scaysbrook combined well at a lineout for the latter to cross.

Bath pressed again, but were caught as the ineffective Mike Tindall spilled possession and Waters hacked through for Kenny Logan to force his way over.

And to rub salt into the wounds of the Grewcock dismissal that followed 18 minutes from time, King kicked a long-range penalty to stretch the Londoners out of sight.

Tindall's catch of a Barkley diagonal kick and Iain Balshaw's try and conversion off another Barkley break brought some late respectability to the score.

But Wasps, who in between managed a close-range touchdown from sub Trevor Leota, were home and dry long before then and Bath's travelling army headed back down the M4 contemplating another blow in a season of disappointment.

Bath: Balshaw, Voyce (Catt 56), Maggs (yellow card, 9-19, retalitation), Tindall, Seveali'i (Perry 73), Barkley, Cooper (Blake 75), Barnes, Humphreys (Mears 20), Mallett (Stevens 67), Borthwick (Grewcock (capt) (red card, 62, punching), G Thomas (Scaysbrook 43), Beattie, Lyle (Delve 6-9, blood) (Delve 61-68).

London Wasps: Van Gisbergen, Lewsey, Waters, Abbott (Erinle 64), Rudd (Logan 32), King, Wood (Howley 75), Dowd (McKenzie 38, blood) (McKenzie 59), Greening (Leota 59), Green, Shaw, Birkett, Worsley, Volley (Scrivener 64), Dallaglio (capt) (Lock 64).

Referee: Nigel Williams (Wales)

Touch judges: Nigel Whitehouse, Hugh Watkins (Wales).

Attendance: 18,074