6 contenders to replace Lee Blackett at Bath

Second-guessing Johaan van Graan is no easy task; his poker face rarely slips.

The Premiership-winning head coach of Bath doesn’t do speculation, and questions about player and coach comings and goings are met with a straighter bat than Joe Root.

But that’s not going to stop us from having a go at predicting who is in the running to replace Lee Blackett, once Bath’s mercurial attack coach leaves for England at the end of the month.

1. Mike Catt
The name on most people’s lips as soon as it became known that Blackett would be on his way after two wholly positive seasons at Farleigh House. RWC 2003 winner Catt has the pedigree, the experience, and a strong link with Bath, having made 227 appearances in the blue, black and white between 1992 and 2004.

His coaching career has involved spells with England, Italy and Ireland in Test rugby and London Irish, immediately after he retired from playing. Catt was instrumental in evolving Ireland’s attacking system that proved so successful over a long period and would have had plenty of contact with fellow South African van Graan during the latter’s time at Munster.

Catt is currently working in Super Rugby Pacific, at the Waratahs, giving him his first taste of southern hemisphere rugby. He is only one year into a three-year contract, but buying him out wouldn’t be much of a problem, considering Bath are likely to get a decent payout from the RFU for losing Blackett.

2. Ed Robinson
A father-son combination in the Bath coaching team would be pretty unique. However, Robinson junior has earned plenty of plaudits in a coaching journey that has seen him do the hard yards in the Championship before stepping up into the Premiership and then earning a shot with England, under Eddie Jones.

Robinson’s trajectory is very similar to Blackett’s in that respect, and they also share the same likeable qualities and philosophies that put players at the heart of the decision-making process. His one-time boss at Rotherham, the former London Irish lock, Nic Rouse, recalled how Robinson made an immediate impact whilst working for free at the struggling Titans.

Rouse said: He was well ahead of anyone his age and a breath of fresh air to work with. He was always thinking about ways to challenge the players, both on and off the field, bringing different themes to life. He got a picture of the Great Escape (movie) line-up and replaced the pictures of the characters with the players. We then showed all the great sporting escapes: the story of Medina, Liverpool’s Champions Cup win in Istanbul … he has a very creative brain. I think it was straight after that that we won our first game.”

Robinson is currently working in Japan’s Rugby League One with Yokohama Canon Eagles, but would no doubt jump at the chance to join his home club.

3. Sam Vesty
Another brilliant coach who has received nothing but the highest praise from those who have worked with him at Worcester and Northampton. The former fly-half also spent some time working as skills coach with England.

As much as they might want him, Vesty is probably untouchable. As head coach of Northampton, the 43-year-old would probably view a move to Bath, where he spent three seasons as a player, as a step down, even though he is No.2 to Saints DoR, Phil Dowson.

Vesty is 18 months into the contract he signed in February 2024, and while the length of the contract wasn’t specified at the time, there is still probably a fair amount to run on it.

4. Paul Deacon
Ten years as attack coach/head coach of Sale Sharks is not to be sniffed at – but would Bath want another club’s cast-off, and would the RL legend want to move south, having spent all his life either side of the Pennines? On the face of it, it appears an unlikely marriage. Nevertheless, Deacon is on the market and has the experience.

The ex-Bradford Bulls player was gutted that he was let go by the Sharks and will be eager to get back in the big time. He is currently involved with Wigan, another of his former clubs, but that is only a bit-part role under head coach Matty Peet.

5. Martin Gleeson
Another league man, who is currently back in the 13-man code as an assistant to former Bath player Sam Burgess at Warrington.

Gleeson was building a good career for himself as a coach in union, unusually focusing on attack, as the preference in the past has been to hire defence coaches from the league.

The 45-year-old Wiganer had been coaching Wasps for just two years when he came into the England set-up in 2021 to replace Simon Amor.

In the two years that he was at Wasps, Gleeson developed a reputation as one of the most innovative coaches in the league, with Wasps reaching the 2020 Premiership final with the league’s best attack.

He left his role with England in January 2023.

6. Kennedy Tsimba
Finally, a bit of a left-field one. Van Graan could be tempted to go back to his old club, the Bulls, to sound out assistant coach Kennedy Tsimba, who once graced the pitch at the Rec as a Bath player in the early throes of professionalism.

A World Rugby Hall of Famer, Tsimba was the first black person to captain Zimbabwe. He finished his playing career at the Free State in 2010 and has spent the last 15 years in South Africa, coaching in the schools and university rugby before graduating to the pro ranks.

Tsimba’s focus has been on skills and unstructured rugby, so pairing him with Finn Russell could be a lot of fun, if not highly unlikely to happen.