Buccaneer Sam Burgess tailor-made for No.6 – Francois Louw
Burgess, by his own admission, has struggled with the nuances of playing centre since his big-money move from League in November.
But his first start at No.6 last week saw the ex-South Sydney prop put in his most convincing shift to date and Springbok star Louw believes the position is tailor-made to suit Burgess’s buccaneering, overtly physical style.
Louw, right, told The Rugby Paper: “I thought centre was going to be Sam’s position but I’ve got to give it to the guy, he put his hand up, got stuck in as a back-rower, did a bloody good job and I think the future for him is as a No.6.
“He has a hell of a work-rate and he gave us that extra dimension between the forwards and backs. With his skill-set that’s the kind of role he enjoys. He can get a bit more involved, which you want from a forward, and so far so good.
“He’s excited about it and it’s about continuous improvement now. He needs to tighten up a few things and hopefully he’ll adapt to a jumping role over time, but at this moment he’s doing a great job and it’s about taking small steps.
“There’s been massive expectation around Sam and talk of him being in a World Cup squad and playing for England, but as an individual it’s been about just focusing on his game and the player he can be is now starting to show.
“Once he makes the full mental shift, he’ll rise to the top fairly quickly.”
Louw concedes Bath’s players are under huge pressure to deliver Premiership silverware after their Champions Cup exit.
With no major trophy since 2008, owner Bruce Craig is seeking a return on his multi-million pound investment. But Louw insists the challenge is to be relished, saying: “Of course we feel that pressure, but it’s a pressure we can feed off.
“We’re all ambitious players, we’re ambitious as a club and everything comes from Bruce. He has a great vision of where he wants the club to be and has put his heart and soul into it. To have such backing is fantastic and it pushes us.
“We set goals ourselves and we want to be a champion side that wins and puts silverware in the cabinet.
“We want something to show for our efforts, something that’s eluded Bath, and this is the first time where we’ve really given ourselves a chance to attain that. Hopefully, we can take that step and make Bruce and the fans proud.”
Bath outscored Leinster two tries to none in Dublin but came out on the wrong end of an 18-15 result. But Louw insists his side will not rein in their attacking style, adding: “There’s massive buy-in as players into our game plan.
“The coaches have put this style forward and it’s player driven as well. It’s a high-tempo, high-risk game where we really take the ball to the line and try to cut defences open, but we’re not doubting the system after Leinster.
“Our game plan has worked for us all season bar the quarter-final in Dublin, where we dominated but mistakes let us down. That was hugely frustrating but we’re competing with the best teams in Europe now.”
NEALE HARVEY
