Harry Randall and Bristol enter the new year with high hopes. The scrum-half has returned to fitness ahead of schedule after hamstring surgery and marked his 150th Bears appearance in the win against Newcastle last Saturday.
Pat Lam’s side approach the Prem encounter with Sale at Ashton Gate on Friday after five straight victories, sitting fourth in the table, their attractive style having clicked. A fresh assault on the playoffs looks likely.
Randall played a part in England’s winning tour to the Americas last summer – and a return to club action is a chance to restate his case for international selection before the Six Nations.
“We’ve had a change of mindset,” says the 28-year-old of Bristol’s hot form. “We feel like we are a really hard team to beat now. Defensively we’ve made improvements from last year. The way we’ve been training and the preparation we’ve been doing has had a massive effect.”
Lam, the director of rugby, spoke this week of the hard work necessary from the forwards to create opportunities for Bristol’s sparkling back-line. Randall concurs that the fun stuff would not happen without a high work rate among the pack.
“The likes of [the Argentina second-row] Pedro Rubiolo, the amount of hard work he does, and [No 8] Fitz Harding,” Randall says. “There’s a lot of unseen work those boys get through that people don’t necessarily pick out because we do a lot of other stuff that’s easier on the eye. Among ourselves it doesn’t go unnoticed.”
Randall has 14 England caps and faces competition for the No 9 jersey from Northampton’s Alex Mitchell and Ben Spencer of Bath, among others. He remains in the thoughts of the head coach, Steve Borthwick, though, who stayed in contact in the autumn.
“It was just a case of him reaching out and asking how my operation went, then a conversation on how I’m tracking,” Randall says. “I just got a message off him again when I got back from injury last week, saying: ‘Good to see you back.’ I really appreciate those messages, it’s a lovely touch.”
In contrast with certain previous England regimes it seems players are increasingly keen to spend time in camp. Randall confirms his experience under Borthwick has been uniformly positive.
“We’re a good group and everyone wants to be involved,” he says. “The performances are starting to show on the field as well: I don’t think that’s a coincidence. It’s a brilliant place to be and the competition in the squad is massive. I’m sure it’ll be a great Six Nations for those selected.”
Bristol’s expansive style differs from England’s but Randall recognises the impact of Borthwick’s attack coach, Lee Blackett, after his permanent appointment in September.
“I think Lee going in was a statement of intent,” Randall says. “He’s had a great effect already from what we saw through the autumn. They’re playing a great brand of rugby and the fans are enjoying it.”
Sale have won on their last three visits to Ashton Gate, including a remarkable 38-0 shutout of Lam’s team just over a year ago, but the Bears seem to have developed into a different animal since then.
Lam says they can go “through, around or over teams”, a claim substantiated by the form of Ellis Genge and Louis Rees-Zammit, both damaging ball carriers in different ways.
“We’ve got players that can create something out of nothing,” Randall says. “Gengey and Rees-Zammit, you’ve got to get them on the ball as much as you can. They are special players and can do things other people can’t.
“As a group we feel confident at the moment, and a confident team is always a dangerous team,” Randall says. “You build good momentum, you get the ball rolling: it’s been a good time for us.”
Randall says life is “very much consumed” by 21-month-old twin girls, but that Clifton coffee shops feature highly on his leisure pursuits in the south-west city when time allows. As for any pre-match routines or superstitions before facing Sale, Randall can think of only one.
“I tend to have a Nando’s the night before a game,” he says. “On away trips we get one with the team. We either go to the restaurant or get a takeaway to the hotel. It’s the protein in the chicken, and you want to get some carbs in to fuel up, so the nutritionist doesn’t mind us having the chips and garlic bread.” If Bristol’s form keeps up, perhaps their recipe for success has been revealed.
