Bath will look to the future now, says Dunn
HOOKER Tom Dunn has provided a window into the scale of change going on behind the scenes at Bath Rugby as the club hierarchy looks to draw a line under their worst season of the professional era.
Who will remain on the staff at the Rec is yet to be established, with results this term including the recent 64-0 thrashing at Gloucester, who also won a Premiership Rugby Cup tie 71-10 against the Blue, Black & Whites in the autumn.
Following the embarrassment at Kingsholm a couple of Saturdays ago, a “highly-placed source” at Bath told the Daily Telegraph: “Changes have to and will happen to get us back to where we should be. Bath will get back to the top.”
As already announced, Munster head coach Johann van Graan will swap the Irish province for Bath in the summer, crucially bringing with him fellow South African JP Ferreira as defence coach, while former Bath player Joe Maddock will return as attack coach, and current head coach Neal Hatley will go back to just being in charge of the forwards.
The question is whether director of rugby Stuart Hooper and or CEO Tarquin McDonald can survive.
Dunn, while acknowledging the 64-0 debacle as his “darkest day” as a Bath player, and adding that the season could be summed up in one word – “disappointment” – revealed that changes are already happening to be in a better place next season.
He admitted: “It has just been disappointing all-around really, I have suffered with injuries for the first time in a while. I had back-toback injuries so missed 12-14 weeks of rugby and from a team point of view, reflecting it is a strange one because we will be a very different club next season.
“We have got new coaches coming in, new medical staff, new S&C staff, a new chef, everything is going to be new. I don’t think there will be a lot of reflection as a team, it will be more about looking forward.”
The season is not over yet, though. Bath have two more games to play, with London Irish up next at the Rec before they travel to Worcester on the final day of the regular season in a match that is likely to decide who finishes bottom of the standings in the Gallagher Premiership.
That game could also mark the retirement of Warriors lock Matt Garvey, who has announced he will hang up his boots at the end of the season. The 34-year-old played for London Irish, Bath and Gloucester before a final campaign at Sixways.
He captained Bath across a sevenyear spell with them, and has made more than 180 appearances in the Premiership during his career.
“I have loved every minute of my 13 seasons in professional rugby, and it is something I never thought that I would have been able to achieve,” Garvey said. “Rugby has also given me the chance to travel all over Europe and play in some of the biggest stadiums. It has given me the chance to play with and against some world-class players.”