Bath boss defends playing his 'B-team'
PREMIERSHIP REACTION: Bath boss Todd Blackadder insisted he’d no regrets over fielding a significantly weakened team for a 27-50 loss to reigning champions Saracens at the weekend.
Table-toppers Saracens ran in eight tries in front of their Allianz Park home crowd in north London against a Bath side who kicked-off in fourth place.
But the visitors had changed 13 of their starting XV, with the likes of Wales’ Taulupe Faletau and Luke Charteris, as well as England’s Dave Attwood and Freddie Burns, left out.
It seemed Bath’s ambitions were limited to collecting a bonus point – something they were denied after scoring three tries rather than four.
Many within the English game have often taken the Pro14 to task for the way teams such as Irish province Leinster often rest key players from domestic fixtures in order to keep them fresh for European Cup games instead.
But the tactic is not unknown in the Premiership, even if it is slightly unusual to see it deployed quite so dramatically early in the season – this was just Bath’s fifth league match of the campaign.
Former New Zealand international Blackadder, who last Friday signed a contract extension that will see him remain Bath’s director of rugby until 2020, was utterly unrepentant, citing player welfare as a reason for his decision.
“We came here to get a [bonus] point,” he said.
“We’ve got Exeter on Friday and we’ve got a massive month coming up. I stand by the decision, absolutely stand by it. We’re doing the best thing for our team and our players.”
Blackadder added: “The team we selected was here to perform. We prepared to beat them.
“We didn’t get what we were after – all we were really after was chasing a bonus point to come away with something, I still think we will take a lot out of this.
“I’d rather bring these young guys to play against the best so that they know what the benchmark is. That way we can freshen our squad up for next week.
“Otherwise we’ll just end up playing our best team every single week and we’ll end up breaking guys. I just don’t think that’s the way forward.”
Mark McCall, Blackadder’s Saracens counterpart, did not comment on Bath’s selection policy.
Instead, he praised the evergreen Alex Goode, whose latest superb attacking display was unlikely to change the mind of England coach Eddie Jones, given how long the Australian has kept the full-back in the Test wilderness.
Goode scored a try and played a key role in several others, with McCall insisting his performance was more than just a matter of innate talent.
“He still wants to play for England, that’s the one thing you need to know, and he works incredibly hard for it,” said McCall.
“A lot of people think it’s natural ability but he’s worked hard to be quicker, to get his body in better shape and you could see that against Bath…It was an incredible performance.”
AFP
