Ojomoh recognised by fans for displays
Bath Rugby centre Max Ojomoh has been named the Rugby Players’ Association’s 15 under-23 MVP for October.
After winning the award, Ojomoh told the RPA’S website: “It means so much to me, because ultimately, they [the fans] are the ones that I play for really. The award is really nice, it’s great to see young players being recognised for what they are doing in the game, and to get nominated and then to win means the world to me, it shows that people do care and like the way I play.
“I’m under no pressure here at Bath, the coaches have given me free licence to do what I can do in attack, my focus is now to try and improve my defensive end. The fact I’m getting so much ball I couldn’t be happier playing at the moment.”
Ojomoh pointed to the job of new attacks coach David Williams in helping him improve his performances so far this season after Williams arrived at the Rec in the summer.
He said: “Yeah, he’s had a huge impact on my game. He’s been really focused on improving our style of play at Bath, he says we’ve got to be a great team to watch, and then the results will come. So that for me, almost means the ball is being thrown out to the wide channels more and once I’m out there I can try and take defenders on, look for offloads, carry hard – it’s easy to get into the game. And the more touches I get, the better I play.”
Ojomoh has also been enjoying playing with academy prospects such as Orlando Bailey, whilst also learning from the more senior figures in Jonathan Joseph and Danny Cipriani.
He said: “To be honest, it makes my life easy because I’ve played with these guys for so many years now in different competitions, Orlando especially, it’s almost telepathic now. It’s safe to say that I know what they are going to do before they do it, so it’s the case of getting on the end of it or letting him know what I need early.
“They [Joseph and Cipriani] are both so knowledgeable and have got so much experience in the game. If I can take 5% of what they can do, I’ll be a great player! I’m just almost copying what they do, picking the best aspects of both of their attacks, and try and implement it into my game.”
As for the rest of the season, Ojomoh added: “My short-term goal is to try and nail down that Bath 12 shirt, I want to play as many games as I can this season, it’s my first season properly playing.
“My long-term goal – I’d love to be in and around the England squad, pushing Eddie for selection. But I’m very happy just trying to strengthen my game, until I’m comfortable enough to be playing at that level. I just want to try and get as much experience as possible, and then take strides every week. It’s good getting a U23 award, but I want to push for the full thing.
“I got a late call-up to the England squad this summer, and it was class. It was quite nice to play with different styles of players, I can almost round my game more because I’m playing with many different types.”