Tom’s dreaming big after his Tier Two nightmare
NICK VERDIER catches up with Tom Varndell, the Bristol flyer now back on course for Cueto’s record
Sometimes you don’t realise what you’ve got until you’ve lost it – but luckily for Tom Varndell he has found Premiership rugby again and is oh so grateful for it. In his first 11 seasons as a professional rugby player, England’s top league was all the speedster had known – playing all of his 169 games in the Premiership with Leicester and Wasps.
After six seasons in London, Varndell decided to move to Bristol last summer which meant a year in the Championship following their loss to Worcester in the promotion final.
Given his status, he was expected to be a cut above the rest in the second tier. However, he admits he found it tough to find his peak and it ended up being a long slog.
But now back in the Premiership, Varndell began the campaign as he finished his last season in the top flight. A try at Twickenham against Harlequins in the opening round signalled the return of one of the country’s most deadly finishers. Talking exclusively to The Rugby
Paper, the 6ft 5in flyer admits he never expected the Championship to be so tough.
“I took that league too lightly to be honest,” he said. “I didn’t think the mental side of the game was going to be that tough. From sharing toilets with the fans, getting changed in a shed or playing on difficult surfaces, it was really hard.
“Last season was all about building towards the play-offs and making sure we got promoted and that made it hard, too. I love the challenge of the Premiership and how relentless it is week-in week-out. I love the speed of the Premiership compared to the attritional game in the Championship.
“I have nothing against the Championship. It’s a great league but the Premiership suits my game better. If anything all this made me appreciate Premiership rugby a lot more. That was all I had known in my career and I took it for granted. But it made me stronger as a player and even more as a person.”
“I’d played a few Double Headers with Wasps but this one felt a bit more special for a number of reasons. It was an amazing feeling to be back at Twickenham after a frustrating season in the Championship.”
After Bristol failed to get promoted, Varndell had the opportunity to bail out of his contract but he decided to honour it. The move also meant his chase of Mark Cueto’s try-scoring record would be put on hold for a season with his last contribution on a Premiership scoresheet the hat-trick he scored against London Welsh in April 2015 that took to him to 85 tries.
But after a year of waiting, it took Varndell only 21 minutes at HQ to get try No.86 as he intercepted a loose pass from Danny Care to race under the posts and bring him to within four of Cueto’s 90 tries.
He added: “I did wonder whether I had made the right decision last season, but the club have been amazing and I don’t regret my choice in any way. I had a clause in my contract allowing me not to go if they didn’t come up but I believe in honouring the contract you sign. I had other options to go elsewhere, but I’m glad I didn’t. It turned out great because it made me realise how lucky I was to do this job and I appreciate rugby and my teammates a lot more now.
“My main focus is making sure Bristol survive in the Premiership but I definitely have Mark’s record in the back of my mind. I’d love to achieve it this season. Hopefully, they’ll be more tries to come to prove I can still perform in this league and give Andy Robinson no reason for not picking me.”
Varndell will return to the Ricoh Arena today with Bristol meeting Wasps giving him an opportunity to take on his old partner in crime Christian Wade. He said: “Where Wasps are at the moment is fantastic but maybe we can beat them. I’m looking forward to going back to the Ricoh and hopefully giving a good account of myself.
“The Premiership is all about testing yourself against the best and that’s what I’m relishing. It was Marland Yarde and George North in the first two rounds and this week it’s Christian. It’d be great to beat Christian on my way to the line to keep the record attempt going!”