Bath have always been a traditional English rugby powerhouse, with six Premiership titles secured between 1988 and 1998 and one Champions Cup trophy lifted in that same period, whilst they have finished as league runners-up on two other occasions and are one of only three teams to have never suffered top tier relegation.
However, whilst history should always be celebrated and revered, time does move forward and their more recent campaigns have not been anything to write home about, with them struggling for form and languishing nearer the foot of the table, avoiding relegation solely due to it being suspended as a result of the pandemic.
It was apparent to everyone who watched them over the last few campaigns that a complete reset was required if the club were to find their feet again, and it was a feeling that was shared by those in power. The appointment of then-Munster head coach Johann van Graan to lead them on the road to recovery was ambitious, but time has shown that it was the right move to make and one that will help them to once again become a force to be reckoned with.
This tactical analysis will take a closer look at just how the South African has transformed the club since arriving in the West Country, breaking down the tactics that he has introduced at the Recreation Ground and highlighting how clever recruitment has been at the heart of their positive start to the current campaign.
Front-footed rugby
One of the things that any coach likes to see on the rugby field is their team playing on the front foot, but it is not that easy to implement, with it needing players to have the right mentality in order to make it work to the best possible effect. This is something that van Graan has really tried to establish during his time at the club so far, and they are this season really reaping the rewards of that hard work and persistence.
One way in which van Graan has tried to get his team playing this way is by asking them to stretch the pitch out and to not automatically gravitate towards the ball, as is the natural reaction of plenty of teams in their attempts to offer passing options and to get over the ball quickly as soon as it is taken to ground.
As a result, it has been common to see Bath’s wingers hugging the touchline on either side of the field, just as Will Muir is doing here, and the advantage of staying this far away from the ball is that it allows the team to shift it away from danger and to play around their opponents whenever they drift infield.
In this case, Jersey Reds have fallen into that trap, with full-back Brendan Owen (who has now joined Bath after Jersey’s collapse) moving towards the ball and leaving the wing open, which allows his opposite number Sam Harris to pass to winger Gabe Goss, who is providing the link here, and then to Muir. With there being less protection on the wing and only scrum-half James Elliott in a position to stop Bath’s advance here, the try is inevitable and is the result of this attack.
Whilst the ability to stay wide definitely played its part in allowing Bath to break through on that occasion, what was also important in making the try possible was the timing of their passes, with Harris and Goss holding onto the ball for a fraction of a second longer than some in their position might have done and carrying it forward until each Jersey player had committed to the tackle.
This is something else that van Graan has worked hard on and which has given Bath a new lease of life whenever they are in possession, and the match against London Scottish was another occasion when they were able to make the most of these delayed passes. In this case, the defenders are in no position to stop scrum-half Tom Carr-Smith moving forward here and so enabled the Bath half-back to once again wait and to time his offload in order to have the maximum effect.
On this occasion, he was able to set up in-form utility back Tom de Glanville to run behind him and through the gap next to where the ruck had been, with this ending up in another try for the home side, demonstrating once again how Bath pose a bigger threat and are able to get onto the front foot more with this mentality instilled into their play.
The key word that van Graan appears to have drilled into his players is momentum, with the analysis so far showing players making quick decisions and not hesitating when they have opportunities to move the ball into space or have gaps ahead of them that can be easily exploited. However, it is very much a team effort in order to make this work, with even those who don’t have the ball expected to display these qualities as Bath try to make it as difficult as possible for their opponents to keep them out.
In this case, the ball has once again been fished out from the breakdown, but this time the attention is on centre Max Ojomoh, who has noticed the gap in the Northampton Saints defensive line and has moved forward to exploit it, and the fact that he was moving at speed when he received the pass from the middle of the field was what allowed him to successfully break through the line here. Had he received it whilst static and then opted to run forward, there is a good chance that Northampton would have been able to get across and block his route off, so that really is the key detail here.
Again, it is moments like this that show how much van Graan has worked on his players taking the initiative and getting on the front foot early, and it is clear that it is having a big impact on their play at the start of his second season in charge.
Strong carrying
However, Bath have not simply become a team reliant on clever passes and well-timed runs in order to gain territory and force their opponents back towards their own try lines, with them also cleaning up a number of basic aspects of the game, such as making strong carries and going through multiple phases of hard work with the ball in hand.
That is not to say that, when going through these phases, they revert to boring play, because they are still looking at how they can take their opponents by surprise and can catch them off-guard. Here, for example, they have presented Newcastle Falcons with the idea that they will try to drive forwards in the maul and to ground the ball that way, but that is actually not what their intention is.
Instead, they quickly shift the ball to the back of the maul for England hooker Tom Dunn to take control of and to then break away with, and Newcastle at this point are in danger of conceding a try simply because they have committed so many players to defending the set piece.
There are still some obstacles that need to be negotiated, which Dunn knows, and so he targets the nearest one (which happens to be fly-half Brett Connon) and tries to force him to commit to a tackle. As soon as Connon bites, Dunn offloads to Cameron Redpath, who has read what his teammate is looking to do and has made a supporting run, and the Scotland centre then has enough space ahead of him to score the try.
Once again, there were a number of aspects to this move that were the result of Bath’s clever touches, such as the 2-v-1 that they created against Connon, but it was the strong carry of Dunn to set it up that really allowed it to work, and that is the key detail that indicates how Bath have improved the basic things as well as adding new tactics to their play.
Another constant theme in this scout report has been the teamwork that is rife in so much of what Bath have done well, with every player buying into what van Graan is looking to do, and the results of that are that both forwards and backs are offering the same things and are constantly rotating with each other around the field.
In this case, former Worcester Warriors captain Ted Hill is looking to progress up the pitch, but he is nearer the wing than the middle of the field, and it is not the first time and he is not the first forward to be found in these alternative channels. However, the speed and determination that he demonstrates when making this carry allows him to act almost like a winger, again showing that a lot of what Bath have done well has come down to role rotation and players doing what is needed regardless of where they or the ball are on the field.
It is that that has really determined who Bath have brought in under van Graan, with new arrivals particularly in the summer needing to be capable of carrying the ball with pace and determination and to defend where necessary, filling in where gaps appear.
In this case, South Africa prop Thomas du Toit, who was signed from Sharks in his home country, is showing that he has that mentality ingrained in him, with the ball coming to him in space here and the front rower having the speed to finish the move off and to ground the ball over the line.
Finn Russell’s impact
Whilst a number of players who joined in the summer have made really positive starts to their time at the Rec, with du Toit being one of them, one who has attracted arguably the most attention and who has really had the spotlight on him is Finn Russell, such is the Scotland standoff’s magnitude and influence on the field for club and country. On the basis of his first few matches in the Premiership, it is clear that the hard work that went into attaining his services from Racing 92 was not in vain.
With Russell being one of the best fly-halves in world rugby, saying that he thrives at kicking the ball into spaces and at creating chances for his teammates might seem like a really simple thing to say, and yet the truth of the matter is that he really is one of the best at this side of the role and is someone who can always be relied upon to locate gaps and to give those around him opportunities to get onto the front foot and to put pressure on their opponents.
It is this that really makes him such a perfect fit for van Graan’s tactics at Bath, and the accuracy of his kicking was shown a number of times during the recent match against Leicester Tigers, with the visitors narrowing up in the same way as Jersey did previously and leaving the wide channels open for Russell to target.
On this occasion, Russell’s kick led to Muir opening the scoring for the West Country side, and what was really noticeable about this kick was that, with the weather being so horrendous on the day, with rain pouring down and the ball becoming very greasy, the risk of knocking it forwards whilst trying to gather it was high. However, Russell trusted his teammates to not make those errors and that faith paid off here, and fans will surely be delighted if he continues to work with the team and to create these opportunities as the campaign goes on.
It is not only when with the ball that Russell’s influence has been felt, with it also clear that he is playing a leading role in organising those around him and ensuring that Bath as a unit are set up in the best way possible to attack with the front-footed nature that has already been demonstrated.
Here, they have come up against a well-organised Saracens line and are trying to find a way through, and it is clear to see how Russell is pointing at where to send the ball and how they can try to keep moving up the field.
This is not to say that he is purely on the field to make these decisions though, with it already shown that he is always looking to make the final passes and to dictate play when he does have the ball, and he does on this occasion offer himself as a passing option when he feels that the time is right for him to do so.
However, the way that he reads the game here shows just how vital he will be to Bath’s play this season and any hopes that they have of maintaining their positive start.
The Scotland star’s arrival has had a positive impact on others around him too, and one who has really benefitted from his move to the Rec has been scrum-half Ben Spencer. Since joining from Saracens, Spencer has tended to be relied upon to shift the ball around the field and to launch attacks where he can, but he showed whilst at the StoneX Stadium that his real skill is in making incisive runs on his own and on taking matters into his own hands.
With Russell now taking on the creative mantle, Spencer has been allowed to revert to that previous style that he played with, and this situation shows him combining with Muir to score a try, with oncoming Newcastle full-back Ben Redshaw no match for him once he reaches top speed.
It was a move from Spencer that showed how he has been reinvigorated by Russell’s arrival, and moments like this could become more common as the season goes on now that he is not being relied upon as heavily to pull the strings from the middle of the pitch.
Conclusion
In conclusion, this tactical analysis has taken a closer look at Bath’s positive start to the new season, with a deep dive into their performances in both the Premiership Rugby Cup and the new Premiership campaign and an analysis of how Johann van Graan has improved and developed certain areas of their game to make them harder to contain.
Whilst everything in the analysis has been centred around the positives in their play, it is important to note that they are still at the beginning of a long recovery process, with there being plenty of signs that they remain a work in progress and that there is a lot for them to keep doing on the training ground if they are to get back to where they once were.
Nevertheless, with three wins in their opening five matches of the current campaign, it is clear that they are very much on the right track with the South African at the helm. There is certainly a lot more positivity around the Rec than there was before his arrival, and that is a testament to all of the hard work that he and his team have been putting in over the last year.