Where Are They Now - Bath's 2008 Challenge Cup winners

On May 25, 2008, Bath ended a decade of underachievement by lifting the European Challenge Cup with a 24-16 win over Premiership rivals Worcester Warriors at Kingsholm.

Olly Barkley, the most influential player on the pitch, landed 11 of their points on his last appearances before moving to Gloucester, while Jonny Fa’amatuainu and Nick Abendanon scored a try each and Butch James kicked a penalty.

An emotional Barkley finished as the competition’s top scorer with 91 points and admitted that he was still coming to terms with leaving: “It still hasn’t sunk in that I have played my last game for Bath.”

Worcester were 15-6 down at half-time before staging a second-half comeback, with their points coming from a Thinus Delport try that was converted by Shane Drahm, who also kicked three penalties.

Steve Borthwick, the newly appointed England captain, was also making his farewell appearance before a move to Saracens. He lifted Bath’s first trophy since they beat Brive 19-18 to become the Heineken Cup Champions in January 1998.

Here is what became of the Bath team.

15. Nick Abendanon: England full-back who retired in 2023, after playing for Vannes, to become a skills coach at Top 14 outfit Bayonne and is the co-founder of the Clapham-based brewery More Lash Lager.

14. Joe Maddock: New Zealand Maori winger who launched a coaching career in New Zealand and then Japan before returning to Bath as the club’s attack coach. He is now the attack coach for the Mitsubishi Sagamihara Dynaboars.

13. Alex Crockett: Bath-born centre, who won England under-21 and Saxons honours and was head of sport at Terrington School and director of rugby at Hull Ionians. He is now Business Development Manager for Net Zero firm Wanderlands.

12. Olly Barkley: An England international who, in two spells at Bath, scored 1,452 points in the Premiership. Has coached in Kowloon, dabbled in property development and also founded Vapoura Rum in 2022.

11. Matt Banahan: England international and Bath legend, who scored 100 tries for the club. When he retired, the giant winger/centre worked in business development but now coaches at Kingswood School in Bath and is an assistant coach with the Scotland Women’s team. Also works as a pundit for Premier Sports.

10. Butch James: The fly-half was a member of South Africa’s 2007 World Cup-winning side. Has been a director at a luxury real estate firm, and is now managing director of Match Capital in Durban.

9. Michael Claassens: A Springbok scrum-half whose older brother Errie was also a rugby player, settled in the West Country and has been involved in a property search, acquisition, and management agency for sportsmen.

1. David Flatman: The loosehead was the cornerstone of the Bath pack and is now a hugely respected presenter, pundit and co-commentator for TNT Sports and ITV. He also works as a corporate host.

2. Lee Mears: The England and Lions hooker is a partner and executive coach for the executive coaching company, The Preston Associates, and is co-founder of T-Cup, a well-being business.

3. Matt Stevens: England and Lions tighthead, who opened a Bath coffee shop with Mears but is now living in Cape Town, where he has worked in hospitality at Boschendal Wine Farm and is now in property development.

4. Steve Borthwick: The lock left for Saracens that summer and later launched a career in coaching and was director of rugby at Leicester Tigers before succeeding Eddie Jones as England coach.

5. Danny Grewcock: The England lock and former Director of Sport at Oundle School, has also worked as a sixth-form tutor in Wiseman’s House. He also had a dual role with Bristol’s Academy and Clifton College.

6. Jonny Fa’amatuainu: The Samoan international loose forward returned to his native Auckland, where he works as the Maori and Pacific Relationship Manager for the Auckland Business Chamber.

7. Michael Lipman: Sydney-raised England flanker who returned home after his career ended, working as a real estate salesman in his home city while also having business interests in Singapore.

8. Daniel Browne: The New Zealand-born No. 8, who had an Irish father and a Samoan mother and qualified for England through residency, is now running a property investment firm, Eden Park Property Investments.

Replacements:
Pieter Dixon: A hooker who was the nephew of Middlesex fast-bowler Vintcent van der Bijl. He has worked in Sales and PR for oil solutions firm Enviroshore Systems in uMhlanga, near Durban.

Duncan Bell: England prop has carved out a career as a mortgage and protection consultant and is an associate director of Chartwell Funding Ltd, as well as being an RFU citing commissioner.

Peter Short: England Saxons player who was the director of rugby at Canford School for a decade and is now a sales specialist with Johnson & Johnson MedTech.

Nick Walshe: England scrum-half who went into coaching with Gloucester, Coventry, and then Cokethorpe School as director of sport. He runs PWW Ltd, a company that rents properties in the Cotswolds and London.

Zak Feaunati: The Samoan No.8 coached at Bishop Vesey’s Grammar School, later becoming the Director of Rugby at Marist St Pats. Played Jonah Lomu in the film Invictus. His daughter Maddi plays for Exeter Chiefs and England.

Shaun Berne: A fly-half and centre whose father, John, was a Wallaby. Started his coaching career with Leinster before linking up with the Western Force. He worked in government and is now the head coach of Randwick Rugby.

Tom Cheeseman: The Welsh under-19 centre was a sports teacher at Feltonfleet Preparatory School and is now a scaffold estimator for Rowecord Total Access.