After a hectic Autumn Nations followed by a shoe-horned round of the Premiership in between, all eyes turn to Europe and beyond as the 2024/25 EPCR Investec Champions Cup kicks off at The Rec on Friday night.

The opening game sees Bath, last year’s Premiership runners-up, hosting the mighty two-time European champions, La Rochelle.

Johann van Graan and Bath excited

James While caught up with Bath’s DoR, Johann van Graan, at the wonderful Farleigh training camp ahead of the big game.

“So firstly, we’re very excited, as it’s great to play in the opening game of this year’s Champions Cup, a competition that I personally love,” van Graan stated.

“Bath’s got a rich history in this competition, and we played in it last season. You know, we enjoyed every single moment of it. The start against Ulster at home, and then the away win against Cardiff, and then the Toulouse game which was a big moment for us from a performance perspective, despite the loss.

“In terms of this season, new competition doesn’t matter what pool you’re in, it’s quality from top to bottom. La Rochelle have a particular romance in the tournament and if you just look at the European campaigns over the last few or four years, you remember watching them thinking, you know what a team and what an amazing culture they’ve built there.

“Our games are all stacked with quality; Benetton are such a tough team to to play away, pretty much almost the entire Italian national team with players like Tommaso Menoncello and Nacho Brex in their world-class midfield. And then Clermont have gone really well in the Top 14 and have been one of the best recruiters at the start of this season,” van Graan admired.

“So, for us as a group,” he continued. “Well, we’re really looking forward to it and above all we’re really going to enjoy ourselves. We’re playing the game with smiles on our faces. And you know, obviously this is now different to the Premiership in terms of player loading and selection. So, we’ll pick our strongest available team for Friday evening, and we’re gonna have a real crack at it.”

Forward heavy approach

With La Rochelle noted for their size, Van Graan admits selection is key for this fixture. The French team boast behemoths such as Uini Atonio, Will Skelton and Greg Alldritt in the pack, with pace and guile provided by the likes of Jonathan Danty and Brice Dulin.

The Bath coach stressed the importance of a balanced 23, and just how important that finishers deliver an uplift in intensity as the big La Rochellians tire, but he also remains fixed and focused on doing ‘the Bath things well’, a key characteristic of the Van Graan era at The Rec.

“I think this is now a game that if you look at the changing world of Test rugby and look at the challenge La Rochelle brings then maybe we’ll set the cat amongst the pigeons and go 8-0 on our bench,” he chuckled.

“I am being tongue in cheek but joking aside, we will go with a dominant forward approach on the bench because of the size of the opposition. And they’re not only big, they’re some of the best players in the world in their team. I have so much respect for Skelton, Atonio, Alldritt and co – you know, it’s almost like a World XV.

“But you can’t spend too much time worrying about that – things you cannot control. So I think the focus this whole week has to be on ourselves. They have to come to The Rec and they’ll be worried about that. And rugby is a funny old game, you know, you just keep doing the things that you do well, and trust in your own ability.

“I think the word that comes to mind the most against them is respect. They are a great club, built with the right culture and fan base, they’ve got a coach who also loves Europe and has had great success personally, and they’re a team that have done really well in the Champions Cup in the last three or four years, so we’ve got to respect that, and like I said, we’re looking forward to it and, as I said, we’re going to have a real crack at them. We can’t wait!”