Finn Russell’s theory for Top 14 teams’ struggles in Investec Champions Cup as Bath’s ‘great addition’ hailed
Bath fly-half Finn Russell is enjoying playing alongside Santiago Carreras.
Finn Russell has spent enough time in French rugby to understand why the Top 14’s finest are struggling in Europe this season, but right now his focus is firmly on what Bath are building at The Rec.
With Santi Carreras settling into the dual playmaker system and the backline stacked with ball-playing threats, Russell believes Bath are finding the rhythm between their forward dominance and the expansive game that made them champions.
The addition of Carreras has given Bath options they didn’t have previously, and Russell is clearly enjoying the freedom that comes with having another genuine distributor in the backline.
“It’s really good. I think Santi’s been a great addition in terms of the way we’re trying to play, the style we want,” he told reporters.
“Santi at full-back and myself at 10, with Cameron Redpath and Max Ojomoh both at centre who are strong ball-carriers but also ball players, we’ve got a lot of playmakers in the backline now. Tom de Glanville is a great ball player as well covering the back three with Santi, and Henry Arundell’s got a really good skill set with his footwork and passing. So Santi’s been a great addition but I think just the way the boys are linking and playing together has been brilliant.”
Why French sides are struggling
Having spent years at Racing 92 and recently faced Castres, Russell has a front-row view of why French sides are underperforming in Europe this season, and his analysis cuts through the usual narratives about physicality and intensity.
“To be honest I haven’t watched many of the games so it’s hard to tell exactly what’s happening,” he said. “I think one of the big traits in the Top 14 this year is teams are winning at home and not getting results away from home. In Europe we’ve had both French teams away from home which should have been an advantage for them, but Edinburgh had Castres away and Toulon lost away as well. Castres won at home against us earlier in the campaign. So I think that’s one of the main things, the advantage of being home versus away.
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“The Top 14 is probably the league where you see the most difference in results between home and away. There’s maybe six teams in the Top 14 that still haven’t been beaten at home but can’t buy a win away from home. So I’d say that’s one of the big factors, just the home advantage being so pronounced.”
Gleeson’s influence and finding width
The conversation turns to Bath‘s attacking evolution since Martin Gleeson’s arrival, with some observers suggesting the team has become more forward-oriented, relying on pick-and-goes and short carries rather than the width that defined last season’s play. Russell offers a more nuanced view.
“I think the weather in some of the games has dictated things,” he explained. “We prepped for Munster thinking it was going to be decent weather and then it absolutely bucketed down so we didn’t really have a chance for the backs to have a go. But probably since the November Test window we’ve spoken more about playing a bit more expansive again.
“Martin brings different ideas as an attack coach, different views on how we can run the attack, so it’s been about figuring that out when a new coach came in, what we can adjust and how to get the best out of the team and what works best for us.
“In the last few games we’ve played slightly wider at 10 and we’ve had more joy with that, and we’re focusing a bit more on multi-phase play trying to stretch things apart like that. But with the forwards we’ve got, I wouldn’t knock using them for pick-and-goes because they’re so good at it. Against Exeter we had 38 or 40 phases about 30 metres out and scored, so it’s definitely a strength of ours. But the backs are looking to be a bit more expansive now as well.”
Russell acknowledges that having such dominant forwards creates its own tactical logic, but he’s clear that Bath’s threats extend beyond forward power.
“Yeah, if you’ve got a super strength like having the back-row and props we’ve got, why not use it as much as you can if you’re dominating in that area? But I think our kicking game this year has been good to watch with the aerial threats we’ve got with Joe Cokanasiga and Will Muir. Henry’s played a couple of games and I think the threats we’ve got there with the boys competing and getting the ball back when defences are getting better, whether they’re blitzing or staying more connected, going to the air is quite a good option.
“Sometimes the game can fall naturally into the forwards picking and going and playing a bit tighter so you use that super strength. But I think the backs we’ve got, the ball players we’ve got, that’s a real strength as well. So it’s about marrying those two elements, using the forwards as much as we have been but also finding time to use the backs. The weekend against Castres was probably one of the best games we’ve had this year in terms of using both, knowing when to pull the trigger and when not to.”
Committed to Bath
Russell’s commitment to Bath was confirmed with a contract extension signed before last season’s Premiership final triumph, and he’s characteristically straightforward about why he’s staying.
“I’ve loved my time here. It’s a brilliant club, brilliant players and coaches and staff,” he explained.
“It’s a great club that’s trying to achieve things after what we did last year. I think we’ve started this season strongly again to show we’re trying to repeat what we did last year, although obviously we’re in a difficult position in the Champions Cup rather than the Challenge Cup which changes things.
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“It was quite an easy decision to stay here. Me and Ben Spencer, I don’t know how much longer he’s got left on his deal but I think it’s similar timeframe, and a lot of the boys are staying on as well. So it’s good that we’re keeping the core together and signing some others around us. Pretty easy decision to stay here and I’m happy, my family’s happy.”
The milestone of surpassing 500 points for Bath, achieved against Castres, adds another layer to Russell’s legacy at the club. What’s striking about Russell’s assessment is how clearly he sees both sides of Bath’s game. The pragmatist in him knows that 40-phase forward sieges win tight European matches, whilst the artist recognises that Carreras, Arundell and the backline playmakers need space to operate.
Most 10s would favour one approach over the other. Russell’s ability to embrace both, to know when to pull the trigger and when to trust the forwards, is precisely why Bath look capable of backing up last season’s success with something more substantial in Europe.
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