BATH and England star Orlando Bailey has revealed all about his youth, club and international career in an exclusive Q&A with the Dorset Echo.
The 22-year-old fly-half spent his grassroots days at hometown club Dorchester RFC and went on to fulfil his dream of playing for Bath before representing England against the Barbarians two years ago.
Bailey took time out of his busy schedule to field questions from Echosport’s Neil Walton.
NW: As rugby players what does it mean to you, and how impactful can it be, to play in front of a full house at the Rec?
OB: The Rec is such an historic and iconic stadium to play in and watch live rugby given it sits right in the heart of the city. I don’t think there are many other sporting venues in the country that are so central which makes Bath a true rugby city and a special place. The atmosphere at home when we played Harlequins in front of a sell-out crowd just before Christmas was incredible and the loudest I’ve heard it in a long time. The support we get from our fans is like having an extra player on the pitch given how passionate and loyal they are towards the club.
READ MORE: Orlando Bailey receives England call-up
NW: Why is Bath such a good place to play and watch rugby?
OB: It was always my dream to play for Bath. There are so many great players here to learn from. I just try and soak up as much information as I can from working with them and watching them in training and in matches so, as a young player, I can learn as quickly as possible to be the very best player I can be. For me it’s about how I can keep improving every day. Having the opportunity, for example, to work alongside great players like Finn Russell who leads by example and works really hard. The way we are evolving as a team, we’re building on having a good set-piece and solid defence and starting to add now the elements of an exciting attack so, as a club, it’s a very special place to play and for the fans, we hope they’re enjoying watching us.
NW: Bath are going well in the Premiership this season but it’s currently very close at the top. Do the boys sense a title win this year?
OB: We take each week as it comes and it’s about trying to keep that momentum going. It’s obviously nice to be close to the top of the table at this stage of the season but as a group we just want to get better every week and there’s still a long way to go. In the grand scheme of things, we’ve not achieved anything yet, we’ve certainly made improvements on last season but as a team we’re keeping our feet on the ground at this halfway mark in the season. Everything we’ve achieved so far is through hard work across the whole squad, being consistent and having a belief in what we are doing every week on and off the pitch to get better.
NW: What is your earliest rugby memory, either playing or watching?
OB: I remember going to Dorchester Rugby Club around the age of five or six and watching my older brother, who is four years older, playing tag rugby. I’d be there with my dad watching my brother and I’d always be kicking a ball on the sideline and chomping at the bit to get stuck in and looking forward to when my age group began. In terms of watching memories, I also remember going to lots of games with my brother and dad as well, travelling up to Bath to watch. One that sticks out in the memory is that 2014/15 season when Bath played Leicester Tigers at home in the Premiership semi-final and won (47-10), that was a great day out and I remember that one well.
NW: In terms of your professional career, how significant were your formative years at Dorchester RFC?
OB: They were awesome. I was there from under-sixes through to under-16s so a 10-year period which was massively formative in both my enjoyment of rugby and also my skill set. Mike Sprules joined as a coach when I was around the age of under-11s, and he took over our age group and was definitely a huge part in my playing career. He really drove a good brand of rugby and set high standards and he got boys from all over the county wanting to come and play for Dorchester. He assembled a really successful and really fun team and five of that team have gone on to play for Bath and one’s at Scarlets so that many professional players from one team is pretty cool and there was something special going on at that time and a great club (to be at).
NW: Do you still keep in touch with Dorchester’s results?
OB: As I mentioned, I’ve got a really good relationship with Mike. He carried on coaching after I left with another age group, and I think he was also doing the Colts. I’d chat to him and update him on everything at Bath Rugby and he’d tell me which good players were coming through at Dorchester so it’s nice to hear about the next batch of young, exciting players at the club.
NW: Can you put into words how it felt to make your England debut?
OB: Being involved with the England squad in early 2022 was an opportunity for me to go there and just try and express myself and, again, learn as much as possible. I got the game against the Barbarians in the summer at Twickenham which was a really cool experience with my family there watching in the stands. It wasn’t quite an England debut given the opposition but it’s certainly a step in the right direction. Playing for Bath always has to come first because you’ve got to focus on getting better as a player at your club. If you keep doing that and keep giving 100 per cent then hopefully those opportunities at international level will come again.
NW: What advice would you give to any budding young players?
OB: The main thing I would say is just really try and enjoy your rugby and get stuck into learning as much as you can, learning new skills and enjoy being out there whatever night of the week that is and expressing yourself. There is a lot of good information around now with online coaches to watch lots of rugby. If you want to do it as a profession there’s absolutely no reason why that can’t be possible if you have the right mindset and love for the game. Just work your way up the pathway systems because there are some really good ones in place and the Bath Rugby Academy has been really great for me over the last five or six years that I can remember. The main thing for me is just to enjoy it as much as possible because that’s what it’s all about.
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