‘The sky can be the limit for Bath’ after treble-winning campaign
Bath boss Johann van Graan has taken the club from rock bottom to the summit of the English game
©Patrick Khachfe | OI
On Saturday afternoon, under the beating sun at Allianz Stadium, Bath completed their historic treble and secured a first Premiership title for 29 years as they edged Leicester Tigers 23-21 in a tight contest.
Leicester came out of the blocks firing with an early try from Jack van Poortvliet, but Bath, despite their performance being littered with unusual errors, entered the break with a narrow lead thanks to a try from Thomas du Toit and penalties from Finn Russell.
The second half was mired in drama with a disallowed try, a controversial yellow card and a late try for the Tigers but eventually, the Blue, Black and White were crowned champions for the first time since 1996.
So, after one of the most entertaining Premiership seasons in recent memory, what did we take away from this year’s final?
Bath: Champions of England
The last time Bath won a Premiership title, the majority of the current squad weren’t even born.
For Max Ojomoh and Tom de Glanville in particular, they experienced a special moment as their fathers, Steve and Phil, had lifted the same trophy 29 years before.
And now they have followed in their footsteps.
For a community steeped in rugby history and heritage, what it meant for Bath to lift that trophy is beyond words.
Just three years ago, before the appointment of Johann van Graan, Bath finished bottom of the Premiership, but the South African has transformed the club from top to bottom.
After falling just short in last year’s final, this season has brought a historic treble: The Premiership Rugby Cup, the European Challenge Cup and now the Premiership title.
“I’m so proud of this group of people that in three years have done the unthinkable, really,” Van Graan explained at full-time.
“Our whole focus this season was on winning the Premiership. Planning, selection, loading, tactical, all of it, we were doing with the goal to win the Premiership this season.
“We kept that within the circle and learned our lessons through all of the knockout games, but I think the most important bit is every week, we got back to zero and tried to get better.
“You don’t become a champion when you win a trophy, you’re a champion every day of your life.”
It is clear to see the impact that van Graan has had on everyone at the club, and that sentiment was echoed by his captain Ben Spencer and mercurial talisman Finn Russell.
“Not sure there’s enough time to sit here and discuss what he brings,” Spencer explained.
“He has an unbelievable ability to remain calm at all times, and I can't speak highly enough of what Johann has brought to this group.”
Russell added: “Johann is amazing at his job, one of the best I have ever worked with in terms of bringing everyone together.
“That is not just the players, it is the staff, bringing the whole club behind it. The city we are playing for gives us that energy as well, and Johann has brought it all together in a way I have never felt before.”
Legends leaving
Saturday's game was undeniably emotional on many levels, particularly as it marked the farewell for two legendary England and Leicester Tigers players, Ben Youngs and Dan Cole.
Despite a valiant late effort that saw them narrow a 20-7 deficit heading into the final 10 minutes, the ultimate outcome will undoubtedly hurt for the Tigers.
There was no fairytale ending for two of the club’s greatest players, and that was made all the more difficult when Cole exited the field early after being handed a yellow card in the 70th minute.
It left Cole understandably devastated at full-time, with pictures showing the veteran prop being consoled by former teammate Tom Croft.
“Dan will be fine,” Youngs said post-match. “You try to make positive impacts on the game, you’re trying to compete, he’s out there trying to put pressure on and it didn’t go his way.
“It’s an emotional day for him. It’s the end of a massive chapter. He’s Leicester born and bred, and we all deal with it differently, and it’s tough.
“Although you know it’s coming [retirement], when it actually is done, you’re immediate reaction is: ‘I’d love another shot next year’ because that’s how we’ve always thought as sports players.
“Places shape you, and that place [Leicester] certainly has. I left home at 16 to pursue this dream of being a professional rugby player. I’ve met so many characters along the way, and you’re influenced by these people and these great players and icons of the game that you're surrounded by.
“Ultimately, the person I am today is shaped by all the experiences I’ve had as a professional at that club.
“I’ve tried to enjoy the day, and I’m just proud of the club and what it stands for and represents.”
As well as Youngs and Cole, Tigers also said goodbye to captain Julián Montoya as well as head coach Michael Cheika, who turned Leicester around from finishing eighth in 2023/24 to Premiership finalists.
“I have already had some tears in the week and in the changing room,” Montoya admitted.
“I’m very proud and going to miss these players a lot, but today is about the team, and that’s why this place is so special. It’s the team first always.”
Contentious decisions
It wouldn’t be a Premiership final without some debate, and Saturday was no different.
From Ben Obano’s red card last year to Dylan Hartley's in 2013, drama and talking points are always a given.
On Saturday, it was Leicester fans and boss Chieka who were furious at some of the decisions which went against them.
Cheika, who is no stranger to controversy after receiving a two-week ban earlier in the season for disrespecting a match-day doctor, was clearly frustrated with referee Karl Dickson.
“All year, we’ve tried to learn about embracing the heat when it gets tough, and today we were under pressure from all different avenues.
“Fires were going on everywhere, whether they were set up by the opposition or the ref.”
On the decisions around the scrum, Cheika added, “I’ve never seen it before in my life, dominating like that and getting nothing, zero. In fact, getting penalised against!
"Obviously, that was a strategic point for us to try and dominate there and in mauls as well. That was completely nullified. It cost us field position.
“I think with three minutes to go, it was nine penalties to two. It is impossible to manage a field position scenario with that outcome.
"I don't think, of course, I'll always have a slightly biased lens, we were that much more foul than them. It was frustrating, to say the least.
“Always when you come out of the back of a finals game and you’ve scored more tries than the opposition, that says something about the penalty count.”
Tigers conceded nine penalties to Bath’s five, with a scrum completion rate of 83 per cent.
However, perhaps most controversially, was Cole’s yellow card.
Having only been on the pitch a handful of minutes, receiving a wonderful welcome from the Twickenham faithful, Cole charged down a clearance kick from Russell.
However, he landed a late shoulder on the British and Irish Lion, which meant Cole’s final was finished.
“For me personally, if the game is sending players to the sin bin for that, or even penalising…What do I say, mate?” Cheika continued.
“If I say something, I’ll get myself in strife and take away from the champion team who have led the competition and deserve to be in that position right now because they won on the scoreboard.
“I just have to beat myself up inside and try and keep as much as I can inside. I’ve got my feelings on the referee’s performance, but I’ll take that up with Paul Hull [Head of Refereeing] as one last final banter, let’s say.”
What’s next for Bath?
There’s no denying that Bath have been the strongest side in the Premiership all season.
With only four defeats in the league and winning every single knockout game they have played in, it’s been a campaign to savour.
But as always in sport, attention turns to the future.
Premiership rugby has been built on dynasties; Leicester Tigers of old, Wasps in the 2000’s and most recently Saracens.
However, there have been six different Premiership winners in the past six seasons, so after achieving the incredible heights that they have this term, the question is whether it can be a springboard for this Bath outfit.
"I'll set the vision, we'll align as a group, and we'll take whatever's next,” van Graan said.
“Champion teams are teams that win things multiple times. The day you stand still is the day somebody catches you. I learned in my time at the Bulls when I was part of a team that won a lot, you must always train like number two, because the other guys are coming.
"We'll look at ourselves and we'll go again. It's a journey. There's no endpoint. Many years, hopefully, after I’ve gone, this club will keep getting better and better.
“The future of this club is unbelievably bright,” Spencer added.
“No matter who pulls on a shirt, it’s the next man in, and I can’t speak highly enough of the guys coming through. Their work ethic is second to none.
“As long as we keep our feet on the floor and keep wanting to get better, then the sky’s the limit for this team. There’s always an opportunity to get better, and I’m really excited for the next couple of years.”
