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The Gavin Henson lesson that won't be lost on Charlie Ewels when Danny Cipriani walks through the Bath door

By Liam Heagney

25 Mar 2021

(Photo by Getty Images)

England lock Charlie Ewels revisited an important past lesson he learned about Gavin Henson when asked on Thursday to talk about Danny Cipriani, the new Bath signing who will arrive with a bit of a reputation when he comes through the door at The Rec in May.

The 33-year-old Cipriani has been on a sabbatical from rugby since quitting Gloucester in mid-December, but he has now signed a one-year deal that will take him through until the end of the 2021/22 season at Bath. Ewels will be Cipriani’s skipper at the club and while the ex-England out-half comes with a multitude of unflattering opinions surrounding him, the Bath second row won’t pay any attention to the negativity.

The lesson to not judge people until you know them was something not lost on Ewels regarding the 2013/14 arrival of ex-Wales international Henson at Bath. As with Cipriani, Henson was coming with a colourful reputation that Ewels found could not have been further from the truth when he got to know the Welshman from working with him on a daily basis.

Maverick ex-Wales back row Andy Powell guests on RugbyPass All Access

“You hear all these stories about players and whatnot and I heard a lot of stories about Gavin Henson before he showed up at the club. Then I met Gav and it completely changed my opinion,” explained Ewels.

“I said to myself I’ll only ever make my own opinions with people. What you hear about lads before you have met them, before you have seen what they do day to day as a pro, is very, very different. So I always form my own opinions of someone when I have been with them in the environment.”

"I want him to come here and be the absolute best version of himself within our team"
– 18 weeks after Danny Cipriani last played a match for Gloucester, Bath believe their new signing will be the real deal #PremRugby https://t.co/HFPh1F3Dnr
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) March 25, 2021

Ewels already has a brief experience of working with Cipriani as both were on the 2016 England Saxons tour to South Africa and a positive first impression was made. “On that tour, I was 21 but he was brilliant. He was good to me, I learned a lot from him on that tour. It was the first time I properly stepped outside the Bath environment and met lads and he had a different way of seeing the game and I learned a lot from him.

“Again, you can hear the stories, you can see the things that are written in the papers and stuff but until I have been with someone day in day out and worked with them, I won’t form my opinion of what I think of them until then and Danny is a good pro.

“The perception is that he loose and flamboyant but if you actually watch him, he finds all of his moments within the shape. You speak to lads who played with him on that tour, he is so rigorous on what lines you should run because he knows… he is so good at organising the forwards and organising the guys around him and then he will find his moments in that shape.

“I can tell you now, I can show you clips of lads who play loose.. and defences in this league are too good for someone to be off just doing their own thing. The guys that shine are the guys within the shape and within the attacking structures, they can see the space and then they have got the skill set to throw the option, but it would never be there if they didn’t organise the guys around them.

“We all love working with Rhys (Priestland). We want to push to the end of the season with Rhys, Orlando (Bailey) coming through and then Cips is the next coming in and will be the next step on that. He has got different skills from Rhys, he will have some new ideas around the attack. I went on that Saxons tour with him so I know a little bit of what he is about, I like how he attacks, I like how he sees things, I like how he puts detail on the attack… it will be exciting to work with him.”

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— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) March 24, 2021

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Comments on RugbyPass

Bull Shark 34 minutes ago

England vs Japan | Live & Latest Rugby Union Scores & Results | RugbyPass

Even I saw that knock on

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johnz 1 hour ago

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It's that pass and step left/right thing he hasn't learnt to do yet.

47 Go to comments

CW 1 hour ago

'English fans will certainly give him the respect he deserves'

Move on from the old guard. They are not world-beaters. Based on this development path and current selection policy they will suddenly realise in 2026 that they need to bring in players that are capable of being world-beaters by 2027, but it will be too late.

1 Go to comments

CW 2 hours ago

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What's the point of the selection v Japan. Most of the current England players will be close to 30 or older by WCup 2027. At the very least pick players that can be world-beaters by then. The current crop has shown they can't do that unfortunately.

4 Go to comments

CW 2 hours ago

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What's the point of the selection v Japan. So many of the current England players will be close to 30 or older by WCup 2027.

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Bull Shark 2 hours ago

What has happened to Aphelele Fassi?

The difference between Fassi and Le Roux?

Almost 100 tests. Fassi is growing from test to test and is already world class. It’s going to be difficult for Damian Willemse to usurp Fassi at 15 and may find himself destined as the utility back on the bomb squad.

South Africans love hating on their fullback. A proud tradition since Percy Montgomery (before he won us a World Cup). So I don’t pay much mind to the noise that follows anyone who puts on the 15 jersey for SA.

15 is a high risk, low reward position. You don’t dare drop a high ball, certainly don’t shank a kick into the stands. In fact if you’re not kicking 60m torpedoes into the opposition corners - stay at home.

And miss tackles? After everyone else on the team has let a break through - best you not miss!

Only Andre Joubert strikes me as a fullback that has been better than Willie. Yet Willie has been widely panned on a regular basis. Irritating.

Fassi is great. And I’m sure he’s learning a lot from Willie.

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SadersMan 2 hours ago

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No, Penney's win rate as a Super Rugby coach BEFORE he was given a 2 year contract here, was 23%. He came in with a very poor success rate at SR level.

This loser vibe was borne out over the SR season where we won only 4 games while losing 10. Finishing 9th in a 12 team competition & missing a QF spot was next level DOWN.

There's zero evidence that suggests we will win 10 games (70%) as you predict. I understand there may be new assistant coaches coming on board. At this stage, we can only hope for the best.

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Bull Shark 2 hours ago

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What!?

A 75% win ratio during the Autumn series “ain’t bad”!?

How the mighty have fallen.

Funny, when the Boks didn’t win all their games they were called a “kak team between world cups”.

1 Go to comments

Flankly 2 hours ago

What has happened to Aphelele Fassi?

He's also faster than he gets credit for. Take a look at "Fassi vs Dyanti chase down" on YouTube. At the time Dyanti was a rockstar winger, and it was reasonable to assume that once he got the ball in clear space that it was try time. Think again.

Having said that, the Le Roux superpower is vision for space. Fassi and Willemse both have a long way to go before they are able to perform those bridge passes and kick passes with Willie's level of judgement, timing, deception and execution.

2 Go to comments

Bull Shark 2 hours ago

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Agreed.

9 Go to comments

Flankly 3 hours ago

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Obviously a convincing win for the Boks, but they will be disappointed with the scoring efficiency. The general stats are off the charts, with plenty of possession and territory, line breaks, running meters, set piece success etc. But there were long periods without scoring. And specifically the outside backs (Kolbe, Arendse and Fassi) were less productive in scoring tries than you would have expected with the comprehensive core dominance that SA had. Also, the SA bench promised to upgrade a third string front row and third string half-back pairing to something closer to first choice selections, which could have triggered a points fest in the fourth quarter, but that did not materilaize. Additionally the Boks will be disappointed that Wales scored any tries at all.

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Hellhound 3 hours ago

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It didn't work against the Boks in 2 tests this year. They also lost by more points this year than in the final last year. How would they be WC Champions now? Get real please

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BH 3 hours ago

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Only 8% of the NZ voting base voted for the Act party, so it does not represent "all people". You sound super upset and sensitive because Perenara spoke out about something you don't like, which is a precious far right-wing party trying to rewrite New Zealand’s founding document to suit a particular political agenda that disenfranchises the indigenous people and wants to eradicate their culture through assimilation and domination. Your perspective is skewed tbh. Your comment about Perenara being "super woke" shows your fragility and xenophobia. Maybe the All Blacks should stop doing any haka so that Maori culture isn't displayed for financial benefits and entertainment. Do you know what the other players in the team think? Are they your mates and you rang them straight after the game to get their thoughts? How did the Hurricane Poua debacle go? Any sponsors pull out yet???

3 Go to comments

Hellhound 3 hours ago

'They smelt it': Scott Robertson says Italy sensed All Blacks' vulnerability

They won. They got the job done. That's a trick the Boks have mastered. That's a very good sign if they do that, because it's good for them knowing they can get the job done in close games

50 Go to comments

TI 3 hours ago

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Rieko took literally years to turn from a defensive liability at 13 into a guy, who’s defensively sound as it befits the position. And it all came at the cost of him being much less of an offensive threat, than what he used to be. Proctor is a natural 13, he handles, passes, and kicks way better than Rieko ever will, he just isn’t as fast.

It’s unfair to judge Tupaea on the handful of games he’s had in 2022 before he got nearly crippled by a Wallaby lock. What could Tupaea/Proctor pairing be, if they got the same amount of chances as Jordie/Rieko?

Because no matter how you spin it, playing a player outside of his natural position is a poor asset management. No matter how talented he is, he still competes against players who had years and years of practice at the position. And if said guy is so talented that he actually CAN compete against specialists, imagine how much better still he could have been, if he had all those years to iron the toothing issues at the position. It just drives me mad.

Two things I hate in rugby union beyond description: aping after league, and playing players outside of their natural position. Especially considering, that they all admit they hate it, when they’re allowed to speak freely. Owen Farrell spent 80% of his international career at 12, saying every time when asked, that he is a 10 and prefers to play at 10. Those players are literally held at a gunpoint: play out of position, or no national jersey for you.

47 Go to comments

Hellhound 3 hours ago

'They smelt it': Scott Robertson says Italy sensed All Blacks' vulnerability

Exactly. Finally someone that sees through the BS nit picking. The AB's deserve respect for their hard work this season

50 Go to comments

Hellhound 3 hours ago

'They smelt it': Scott Robertson says Italy sensed All Blacks' vulnerability

Agreed. Cohesiveness takes time. They worked hard this year and deserves support. They won. No one will remember this game because it just ain't that important in the big scheme of things. They got the job done. That's what count, not nit picking. That is the coaches job.

50 Go to comments

Hellhound 3 hours ago

'They smelt it': Scott Robertson says Italy sensed All Blacks' vulnerability

They need the time to grow. They are trying different things or do you want them to be one a one ride pony with no tricks? After all the hard work they put in this year? New system and coaches, new strategies, disruptions, injuries? They won. They didn't lose. Was it their best game? No. They got the job done. How is a team supposed to gain cohesiveness in one year? I'm a Saffa, but really, its just sad that you expect them to be the best right off the start. Suddenly forgot all the troubles of last year?