WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO BATH?

For a club with so much history, and so much invested in talent on and off the pitch, what is happening to Bath this season? They lie 9th in the Aviva Premiership, having lost 5 out of 8 games this season, including a defeat by Newcastle, and are out of the European Champions Cup, with one game to go, having lost 3 out of 5 group games. Okay, you could argue that they are in a very tough European group with Toulon, Wasps and Leinster, and, also, that they have played most of the top five teams in the league. However, two of their wins in Europe were late or narrow victories over Wasps and Leinster, and they only beat Worcester in the league by one score. If I was a school teacher (heaven forbid), then I would give them a D grade for performance.

Even since their many internationals returned from RWC 2015 duty, their results have not improved. How can a forward pack with the likes of Webber, Thomas, Hooper, Day,  Louw, Houston and Denton fail to dominate the opposition, and win quick ball for the likes of Watson, Agulla, Rokoduguni, Joseph, Eastmond, Banahan, Matawalu and Ford to do some damage. And how could they let homegrown talent like Ollie Devoto, go to their West Country rivals, Exeter, especially as he has just been named in England's Six Nations squad?

Maybe we should look at the coaching team, surely the envy of other clubs, not capable (or willing) to invest up to the salary cap limit.

The cast of Ben Hur coaching at Bath Rugby

I would think that Mike Ford, along with his First Team coaching cohorts of Hatley, Booth and Edwards are under pressure at present, as the Bath shareholder(s) review the ROI they are getting on their considerable outlay. With Europe soon out of the way, at least they can focus on improving performances and results in the Premiership, with crucial games against Sarries, Gloucester, Worcester and Wasps over the coming month, set to decide their season (and the fate of some of the players and management).

Come on Bath, you can do it!