Burgess shouldn't rush to Bath
Bath coach Mike Ford told cross-code convert Sam Burgess to take all the time he needs before joining up with the English Premiership Rugby Union club.
Burgess was one of the stars of the show as South Sydney Rabbitohs beat Canterbury Bulldogs 30-6 in Australia's National Rugby League Grand Final last weekend, despite suffering a broken cheekbone and damaging his eye socket in the opening minutes.
Burgess was due to arrive at Bath on October 15, but Ford – himself a former Rugby League player – said he had told the 25-year-old Englishman there was no need to rush back from Australia to join the west country side.
"We don't have a new date for his arrival yet," said Ford.
"There's no date yet but that's not a problem at all.
"He was always going to have a rest after five years in that brutal competition.
"He'll be very emotionally drained after that Final as well.
"So we're letting him stay there after his operation, he can enjoy a bit more time with his family, enjoy the celebrations.
"I think it's important he smells the roses of what's gone on over the last five years and he's going to come over and learn the game."
Burgess' return from Australia has been timed to allow him chase selection for a place in the England Rugby Union squad for the 2015 World Cup.
However, even before Burgess's injury, England coach Stuart Lancaster did not lack for alternatives in midfield – the most likely Union position for the powerful League centre.
Burgess would likely have to force his way into England's squad for the Six Nations, which start in February, to have a realistic chance of appearing at a home World Cup when the global tournament gets underway in September.
And Ford said breaking into the first team at Bath, currently second in the English Premiership, let alone the England side, would be no easy task for Burgess.
"I think it's disrespectful to the players already excelling at Bath to even think that he's going to walk into our first team," said former England defence coach Ford.
"He's got to learn the game, and he's got to get credit in the bank before he does that, before we even start talking about England.
"So it is a blessing, I think, mainly because of his body and his mind to keep him fresh, going into what will be the end part of the season which will be tough as well."
But Ford said he'd been impressed by the tenacity Burgess had demonstrated during his time in Australia.
"He's tough for sure: he's been an Englishman in an Australian competition for starters, when they don't like the Pommies, especially in Rugby League.
"He's excelled as a young kid, he's only 25 now, and he went over when he was 19.
"So it's not just the physical toughness he showed at the weekend, it's probably the mental toughness too.
"He's gone over there and proven to the world he's a real good rugby player."
Source: AFP
