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BT Sport’s Nick Mullins has over the last decade become the instantly recognisable voice of rugby union in the British Isles.
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Over the course of around 40 matches per season – and upwards of 100 preparatory training ground visits – BT Sport’s leading match commentator sees more Gallagher Premiership action than most.
As such he is ideally placed to assess the hopes of the 13 teams for whom the road to Twickenham next June gets underway this weekend.
Here is the first part of his club-by-club preview.
Bath
Last season: Seventh place with 52 points (W10, D0, L12)
Top scorer: Rhys Priestland (150)
Top try scorer: Will Muir (7)
Head coach: Stuart Hooper (appointed 2019)
Arrivals: Seven including Danny Cipriani, D’Arcy Rae, Jaco Coetzee
Departures: 14 including Zach Mercer, Elliott Stooke, Rhys Priestland
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Most recent play-off season: 2019/20
Title wins: Six
Nick’s verdict:
“I won’t be the only one talking a lot about Danny Cipriani this season, but I am also very interested to see how David Williams their new attack coach goes.
“I know they’ve been talking about how they blend backs and forwards a bit more effectively and those two are central to that.
“Everybody at Bath will hope he has a huge impact because lots of neutrals looked at them last season and wondered how a team with so many impressive backs could not be more consistent.
“Cipriani for Priestland makes them a different looking team, and they are going to have to find someone to step up for Zach Mercer who was our man-of-the-match every time we saw them play.”
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Bristol Bears
Last season: First place with 85 points (W17, D1, L4) then beaten semi-finalists
Top scorer: Callum Sheedy (91)
Top try scorer: Max Malins (8)
Head coach: Pat Lam (appointed 2017)
Arrivals: Three including Tom Whiteley
Departures: Eight including Max Malins, Ben Earle and Siale Piutau
Most recent play-off season: 2020/21
Title wins: None
Nick’s verdict:
“They’ll be top four again, probably top two and maybe top one but there’s another team or two who will have something to say about that.
“They’ve lost Ben Earl and Max Malins who had positive impacts last season but they have Tom Whiteley coming the other way from Saracens.
“The player I’m most curious to see how they replace is Siale Piutau since I got the impression that for all the magic they threw out last season a lot revolved around him.
“Pat Lam is much too clever not to have thought about what they’re going to do about that and maybe there will be a subtle change in how they play.
“I can’t think of any better way to start the season than Ashton Gate on Friday night against Saracens and those two will be going at each other throughout the season.”
Part 3 from @andNickMullins covers Sale to Worcester
"What I suspect keeps the coaches awake at night is not knowing how they will perform from one day to the next but that’s what makes them so watchable"https://t.co/PQxuXWQjCW— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) September 13, 2021
Exeter Chiefs
Last season: Second with 82 points (W17, D0, L5) then beaten finalists
Top scorer: Joe Simmonds (184)
Top try scorer: Sam Simmonds (21)
Head coach: Rob Baxter (appointed 2009)
Arrivals: Seven including five from their academy
Departures: Eight including Alex Cuthbert, Corey Baldwin and Tomas Francis
Most recent play-off season: 2020/21
Title wins: Two
Nick’s verdict:
“They are sticking largely with the squad that has got them to the last six finals and there’s no reason to think they won’t make it to their seventh in a row.
“As much as we neutrals were thrilled by the final, they will have been burned by it and you can be sure no-one will have worked harder than Rob Baxter and his coaches over the summer to put that behind them.
“I am very interested in how Exeter have developed their academy and made players into Premiership stars and the next name to have been promoted is Frankie Nowell – a teenage utility back who is Jack’s brother.
“I suspect we’ll be talking a lot about him over the next few months.”
Gloucester
Last season: Eleventh with 45 points (W7, D0, L15)
Top scorer: Billy Twelvetrees (104)
Top try scorer: Santiago Carreras (6)
Head coach: George Skivington (appointed 2020)
Arrivals: Eight including Adam Hastings and Ben Meehan
Departures: Six including Matt Garvey, Willi Heinz and Matt Banahan
Most recent play-off season: 2018/19
Title wins: None
Nick’s verdict:
“Patience is the watchword for Gloucester, they are further down the redevelopment path than Worcester but George Skivington is having to completely rebalance the squad.
“Looking from the outside over the last few seasons they seem to have invested heavily in the backs and less so in the forwards and that now looks to be changing.
“Adam Hastings catches the eye as an arrival, but it is how they are beefing up the pack to give the likes of Lewis Ludlow more support that is more critical and I think George would want them to be much more impactful up front.
“I know one or two Gloucester forwards of old who will be choking on their pints of bitter at the thought of an artificial pitch at Kingsholm, but that’s what they’ve done and if that isn’t a line that tells up about 21st century rugby I don’t know what is.”
Plenty of Premiership clubs will be interested in this news… ?????https://t.co/8Jz7bIFG7x
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) September 12, 2021
Harlequins
Last season: Fourth with 71 points (W14, D1, L8) then champions
Top scorer: Marcus Smith (286)
Top try scorer: Danny Care (12)
Head coach: Tabai Matson (appointed 2021)
Arrivals: Seven including Huw Jones and Tomasso Allen
Departures: 11 including Mike Brown, Elia Elia and Nathan Earle
Most recent play-off season: 2020/21
Title wins: Two
Nick’s verdict:
“I love Tabai Matson’s appointment – he fits perfectly into what they are trying to become.
“I know how much Bath and Todd Blackadder missed him when he had to leave early a few seasons ago.
“Some questions:
“Can they do what the 2012 title winning team couldn’t and kick on next season?
“Can that brilliant end to last season build into a cohesive challenge again this year?
“Is Marcus Smith ready to take the next step up and not just boss Premiership games but begin to boss test matches for England?”
Part 2 of 3 from @andNickMullins covers Leicester to Northampton
“Clearing out the attic feels the best way to describe last season when they had the most major of overhauls"https://t.co/prlU1TNfok— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) September 13, 2021
