Bath boss reveals extent of Finn Russell’s injury and pays respect to ‘family man’ leaving the club in the summer
Bath boss reveals extent of Finn Russell's injury and pays respect to 'family man' leaving the club in the summer
Bath boss Johann van Graan has paid respect to his hat-trick hero Thomas du Toit, who helped his side secure a home semi-final in the PREM playoffs.
The tighthead prop has been utterly unplayable at times this season, and his dominance in the tight was never more so than on Saturday, when he delivered a Player of the Match performance to give Bath a 24-22 victory over the old rivals, Leicester.
Speaking about the Springbok international after the match, Van Graan said: “Incredible, incredible player from a tighthead perspective.
“What he does in the scrum and lifting in the line out, and how he attacks and defends, mauls, his try scoring ability, but I think what we’ll remember at the back end of the season, when we look back at Thomas, the teammate that he was, the family man, the husband, the father, the friend, and an incredible player.
“And that kind of represents what the group’s about; tough to beat and literally played the 74 minutes when he started cramping, so yeah, incredible rugby player.”
Du Toit is heading back to South Africa at the conclusion of this season and will join the Durban-based Sharks, alongside Stephan Lewies, Murray Koster, Nemo Roelofse, Donovan Don, Ginanni Lombard, Hendré Stassen, and Esethu Mnebelele.
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Finn Russell injury
Elsewhere in the Bath squad, there was a noticeable absence at fly-half, with Santiago Carreras stepping into 10 instead of the mercurial Finn Russell.
Still recovering from a calf issue, the Bath coach decided against putting him in with the playoffs already confirmed.
“It’s about managing risk and making good decisions,” the Bath boss explained.
“If you think back two seasons ago, he had a groin injury, and we made a decision when to put him back, and again, if this was do or die today, we would have put him in.
“He’s in a great place, but he’s not perfect. He’ll have to get through the week, but let’s see, Friday, 12 o’clock, what the team is for the game.”
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Reflecting on the effort put out on the field throughout the season, he continued: “Credit to the players. That’s our third home semi-final in a row. It shows the hard work that’s been put in.
“It was like a Test match out there. Two very good teams, difficult weather. We came away with a two-point victory, so very glad about that.”