YOUNG GUNS

EWANRICHARDS

Premiership debuts at 18 are rare so it comes as no surprise when England U20s prospect Ewan Richards describes his recent experiences as “surreal”.

Richards, who turns 19 next month, is the latest in a growing line of Bath academy products to have been handed top-flight chances by rugby director Stuart Hooper, whose stated aim is for 50 per cent of his first team squad to consist of homegrown players.

Richards, who hails from Yeovil and came through the junior ranks at Tor RFC and Wells RFC before appearing on Bath’s radar, says: “Getting my debut last month against Harlequins was amazing and to follow it up against Northampton was surreal.

“My father was a Bath supporter so it was a childhood dream really and the ambition now is to keep pushing on and make a few more appearances, then hopefully get some game time with England U20s when the Six Nations eventually gets started.”

As a secondary school pupil at Crispin Academy, Street, Richards also excelled at handball in which he represented Somerset and became a national champion. But rugby was always his passion and when the time came, the career decision was simple.

“There was only one winner,” Richards says. “After originally playing a bit at prop and then No.8 and centre, my size meant I got put into the second row. However, my Bath debut was actually at No.6 so it helps having the flexibility to play different positions.

“I’m a second row by trade, though, and one person who’s certainly had a big impact on me since getting into the first team squad is Luke Charteris. Lineout was one of my strengths coming into the academy and I wanted to make that even better, so he was the ideal man for the job having been such a vastly experienced second row with Wales.

“He’s one of the best lineout operators in the business and an unbelievable coach, plus having Stuart Hooper in charge is really useful as well. He’s always in the background watching but having that second person who also played in the same position is brilliant.

“With Mark Lilley, who I had as my U18s coach, now doing the first team scrum as well, I’m getting good advice from all of those guys. I’m always looking at ways in which I can be a bit different and there are other players at the club I can look up to like Charlie Ewels, Elliott Stooke and Josh McNally, so I’m in a great place to learn and develop.”

Having toured South Africa with England U18s in 2019, Richards is clearly a high achiever who relishes fresh opportunities. He added: “Playing in the U20s North v South games before Christmas and then being named in the squad gave me more confidence to push myself.

“Being in camp with the boys at The Lensbury recently was another awesome experience and I hope all these things will stand me in good stead.”