Fitz Harding has big ambitions for club and country

When Bristol inflicted a record 54-24 defeat on Leicester last December, it was a perfect demonstration of the ‘Bears way’. The Tigers were run ragged as Bristol moved at pace and kept the ball alive as much as possible to register a tenth consecutive away win.

The first half was especially frenetic with Bristol storming to an incredible 40-12 lead at the break. It was similar to how Bristol had Bath at sixes and sevens in the first 40 at The Rec back in October.

Supreme fitness, excellent handling skills, support play and intuition are qualities needed to play in this manner, and Fitz Harding, Bristol’s skipper, who makes his 100th club appearance against the Tigers today, has them in abundance.

Underrated by most people outside of Bristol, Harding was king of the offloads in the PREM last season, freeing his arms and getting a pass away in the tackle 32 times in his 19 league appearances.

Harding insists it’s not necessarily an unstoppable urge to throw an offload, but more safety in the knowledge that someone will be there to take the pass and keep the momentum of an attack going.

“Before I arrived at Bristol, I had that as one of my top strengths, so it is something that comes naturally to me, but I think as well, you can’t offload unless there is someone to offload to,” he said.

“The game that we play and the mindset that we have allows me to bring the most out of my game in that sense, I think. I think people associate Bristol very closely with that offload game, but it is not something that we speak about a lot; we speak more about the mindset that allows you to throw those offloads, having no fear, but also supporting your mates and being on someone’s shoulder to take advantage of those opportunities.”

As an openside or No.8, Harding is a key link in the Bristol chain, and fortunately for them, he played in all 19 league games last season, clocking up the fourth most minutes in the PREM.

Head-to-Head

Last 5 Meetings

Wins

3

Draws

0

Wins

2

Average Points scored

31

27

First try wins

40%

Home team wins

40%

After a well-earned break, which included a trip to Cape Town to attend Benhard Janse van Rensburg’s wedding, Harding has been back at it as the Bears bid to improve on last year’s semi-final appearance.

“We’ve spoken about what we want to achieve and any team that got to the semi-final would aspire to get to the final, at least, the following year,” said Harding, no doubt mindful that the return match at home to Leicester was lost 36-19.

“We speak a bit about the big picture and what we want to achieve, but I think it is key for us to focus on what is in front of us.

“We have broken the season up, this first bit up until the autumn internationals, and we have got a real focus on getting the most out of it. We have five games and we want to win all of them.

” Traditionally, we have started fast and then we have struggled a bit more in that winter period. I guess we will address that when we come to it, but first things first, we need to win on Sunday.”

On a personal level, the 26-year-old hopes to push forward his claims for England recognition.

“Of course, it has been an ambition of mine since I was a kid, and that fire to achieve that certainly hasn’t lessened.

“It is easy to become obsessed with achieving that, and there is a lot that is not in my control, so the focus for me has to be on playing well for Bristol and doing everything I can to help the club achieve success. If England caps and personal rewards come with that, so be it.

“I spoke to Steve (Borthwick) a couple of times, especially around those England A fixtures, and I’d say we are fairly aligned on where I need to improve, so it is just about doing that.”

Bristol Bears team to face Leicester Tigers on Sunday (3.30pm KO) in round one of the Gallagher Premiership:

15. Tom Jordan, 14. Louis Rees-Zammit, 13. Joe Jenkins, 12. Benhard Janse van Rensburg, 11. Gabriel Ibitoye, 10. AJ MacGinty, 9. Harry Randall; 1. Jake Woolmore, 2. Gabriel Oghre, 3. George Kloska, 4. James Dun, 5. Joe Batley, 6. Steven Luatua, 7. Fitz Harding (c), 8. Benjamin Grondona.

Replacements: 16. Harry Thacker, 17. Sam Grahamslaw, 18. Lovejoy Chawatama, 19. Joe Owen, 20. Viliame Mata, 21. Kieran Marmion, 22. Kalaveti Ravouvou, 23. Josh Carrington.