The look on Steve Meehan’s face said it all. His team’s hopes of a Guinness Premiership title had just been dashed in an error-strewn defeat against Leicester - Bath’s third semi-final loss in as many years and one that no doubt would cut them deeply - yet the West Country club’s head coach was beaming with pride.
And he has a lot to be proud about. His team have scored the most tries out of any this season (49), and have clawed their way back from the lower end of the table to make this year’s playoffs with some stunning rugby. Yet neither of these on pitch achievements compare to the turnaround the club has accomplished off the field.
A team plagued by scandal
This time last year – after the identical semi-final fixture at Welford Road - Bath rugby plunged itself into the darkest depths of scandal after an end of season party in London turned sour. Allegations of drug taking ensued and four senior players resigned as a result, with one of them, Justin Harrison, admitting to taking cocaine.
Public opinion of the club had barely had a chance to recover following Matt Stevens’ two year ban for class A drug abuse just months earlier, but now it was at an all time low. It was puzzling, why an institution of British rugby, steeped in history, was suddenly being blighted by a modern day temptation. Most of all, it was also a stark realisation for the club’s fans, that the Man Mountains they worshipped week in week out, were human after all.
Coupled with the loss of forwards coach, Mark Bakewell, the club reached new lows, and despite the PR friendly facade that claimed confidence was at a high, in reality it had plummeted, and on the pitch it showed.
A string of losses kicked off their 2009/10 campaign, including a thorough beating at the hands of lifelong rivals Gloucester and a home defeat to Wasps. It wasn’t until December that Steve Meehan’s men gained their first home victory, but it didn’t look promising as relegation loomed over the River Avon.
Not only had injury sidelined some of their headline acts, but there was a lack of panache and innovation to Bath’s game. Steve Meehan was clinging on to his job and the supporters were on the brink of revolution. It seemed like the club had been dealt a heavy blow and was not getting back up.
New Year’s Resolution
The New Year marked a new era for the club, its form rejuvenated by the return of Butch James and Olly Barkley – two of the club’s stalwarts – and its bank accounts replenished by new club owner and wealthiest man in the Premiership, Bruce Craig.
On the pitch, James and Barkley catalysed the copious amount of talent within the club’s ranks which had remained latent in the run up to Christmas. Players like Nick Abendanon, Joe Maddock, and Luke Watson all began showing why Bath are a team to be feared, and helped propel them from 11th to fourth, the team taking 49 points from 12 matches in the process.
Off the pitch, Craig began planning the team’s future, acquiring a 99 year lease on Farleigh House – an historic 17th century manor house that is set to house the club’s new administrative HQ and training centre. He also plans to move Bath to a new ground, with three options currently on the table- one of which is an extravagant renovation of the Rec, planning permitting of course. With an estimated £300 million in the bank though, I imagine that these developments are just the beginning.
However it’s not just the tangible improvements or even the resurgent form of recent that is causing widespread optimism across the city. There is a real buzz and resilience amongst the fans that was vacant from the crowded out stands at the Rec earlier in the season. People believe the club is back on the straight and narrow and is finally back doing what it does best; playing exciting rugby. I’m sure I’m not the only one who is glad to have them back.
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