'I am bigger, faster, stronger': Louis Rees-Zammit

Wales superstar Louis Rees-Zammit insists he will be up to speed and ‘rugby ready’ for the first game of the season after leaving his American Football dream behind to return to the sport where he made his name.

Despite winning contracts with the Kansas City Chiefs and Jacksonville Jaguars, Rees-Zammit did not play a competitive NFL game and has decided to admit defeat after fearing he was ‘wasting his talent.’

The 24-year-old, who won the last of his 32 Wales caps at the 2023 World Cup, added 10kg to his frame during his time in the States.

While that extra weight will have made him a more explosive, powerful athlete, Rees-Zammit acknowledges that the fitness demands of the two sports are very different.

Whereas in American Football he was required to run in short, sharp bursts, Bristol’s expansive style of play often lends itself to high ball-in-play time, with phases of attacking potentially lasting up to two minutes.

“The conditioning is so different, so that’s going to be the biggest difference for me,” he said. “But I am definitely going to be ready for the first week of the year.”

Bristol begin their season away to Sale Sharks in the Premiership Rugby Cup, on Saturday 13 September, while the PREM Rugby league campaign gets underway a fortnight later at home to Leicester.

He added: “Obviously, with the ball-in-play time with Bristol is huge, so you have to be very fit. So I am doing some running on the side until Monday, and then I’ll be back in team training.

“I don’t want to rush into things, I don’t want to be pulling any hammys or stuff like that. We’ll just be easing myself in, and I’ll be ready for the first game of the year.

“I am bigger, faster, stronger. I am in great physical shape, and I am in a position where I can show that off more.

“There were many leagues that we had contact with, but Bristol, I think, was the perfect fit for me.”