News

Repairing the tainted image at Bath

August 07 2009

It has been a 2009 to forget at the Rec. Despite what was shaping up to be a special season under Head Coach Steve Meehan, the wheels ultimately came off with drugs the key culprit.

Before the Christmas and New Year period, an in-form Bath group were firing on all cylinders, with an unrivalled front-row dominating both tight and loose play against all who stood in their path.

Silverware was seen likely when looking forward to both domestic and Europe's business ends.

Bath were strutting the perfect brand and had depth all over the field that helped demonstrate their dynamic intent - one unlucky last-minute loss out in Toulouse proved just how far they'd come.

Then disaster struck on January 20 when England tighthead Matt Stevens admitted to failing a drugs test. Looking back, it was to be only the first wheel that fell off the Bath machine.

The impressively mobile 26-year-old had revealed to Sky Sports News that he was hooked on a recreational drug and had started counselling at a period when he was probably the stand-out number three in northern competitions.

"I was tested for a prohibited substance," said a clearly upset Stevens on that day.

"It was not a performance-enhancing substance: you can make of that what you will. It is a very serious substance and something that over a period of time I have realised that I have an issue with.

"It is something that has basically ruined my life up until this point."

The player was suspended due to club protocol and the rest, as they say is history, with Stevens now in the restaurant game alongside Lee Mears while his rugby return post the ban still remains unclear.

His revelation did not just strike Bath but gave global rugby an immense sideways shift.

It was apparent from their ensuing performances that the old English outfit were deflated by events, and their promising early charge slowly fell away from the turn of the year. Credit to Duncan Bell's efforts but he is not in the same mould as his younger ex-team-mate, with the previous linking balance looking somewhat vacant.

Several months then passed with Meehan's outfit ultimately ending with a fourth-place finish in the Guinness Premiership while their Heineken Cup quarter-final exit left them with more than a tinge of 'what if?'

But even after that final knockout defeat to Leicester on May 9, turbulent times were not even hitting their peak after an end-of-term day out proved to be the final straw for their hierarchy.

Rumours had circulated up to Chief Executive Bob Calleja from a concerned player(s) (who and how many remains unclear) that drugs were consumed that Sunday, with events said to have began just after 09:00 hours. Read the full eye-opening story released by the Rugby Football Union.

An in-house investigation preceded more action taken by Bath in the wake of this Monday's nine-month disciplinary decision, whereby they installed a group of senior personnel to help flush out the problem by 'sticking together off the field like they do on it'.

It has also been revealed that even up-and-coming players, possibly looking for their debut clubs, had been put off by Bath's image following the Stevens and now London sagas.

"What this group is about is everyone taking responsibility for a great club," said member David Flatman, who is joined by David Barnes, Danny Grewcock, Joe Maddock and Stuart Hooper.

"The image has been tarnished, but we have learned from mistakes and they will not happen again. It is about looking forward now, not back."

There is no question that the rebuilding process will need to be attacked head on and if this issue resides in other clubs, surely the RFU's new illicit drugs policy, in conjunction with Premier Rugby, whereby players can be tested for cocaine out-of-season, will implant the ideal scare tactic.

Let us now hope this issue has been put to rest and such unheard of occurrences return to being just that, which seems likely as the club's fresh 'charm offensive' in the community already starts to put pieces back together ahead of the coming campaign.

By Adam Kyriacou