Caribbean islands, millionaire’s speedboats and blood-spinning injections – just some of the secrets behind Finn Russell’s recovery mission for Saturday’s Premiership final. Russell has never been one to do things by the book.
So, when he tore his groin off the bone in April, perilously close to the play-offs, he hopped on a flight to the Bahamas. It was all funded by Bath’s owner, Bruce Craig, who knows exactly how important his No 10 will be if the club are going to win their first domestic title since 1996.
‘I ruptured the adductor longus and tore my ab at the same time,’ explained Russell. ‘I damaged the cartilage too. I was trying to jackal and Christ Tshiunza, the Welsh flanker, got me in the clear-out.
‘It was painful, you feel it pop straight off, and trying to walk off the pitch you can’t really lift your legs. I remember the physio saying, “Finn is in agony but he should be all right” and I remember thinking, “There is no chance I am all right!”.
With their million-pound-man in the medical room, Bath’s campaign threatened to unravel. Russell has been the club’s silver bullet this season so he flew out with the club’s medical team for advanced treatment.
Bath rugby star Finn Russell tore his groin off the bone in April but has made a remarkable recovery to return for the play-offs
Bath are looking to win their first domestic title since 1996 when they face Northampton on Saturday
‘Bruce wanted to take me out to the Bahamas. There is a machine he uses actually for himself but a machine they use to heal you. Me and a physio went over there for a week to use a machine that you don’t get in the UK.
You have a little patch on your back that is connected to the machine and there is a probe that they use on the injured area. The connection between the pad on your back heats the muscle on the inside.
‘Up in Scotland they tend to operate on it and reattach it. In France they see a lot of footballers and don’t reattach it, they let it all settle down. I had that machine and PRP [platelet-rich plasma injections] where they take blood, spin it, and reinject part of the blood to the injured area.
‘It was more full-on than I thought it was going to be. An hour-and-a-half physio in the morning and the evening, training on the pitch with the physio, gym and rehab. I think we spent about half an hour on the beach!
‘One of Bruce’s friends is a part owner of a boat and they were going to an island to do some business and we jumped on with them on the day off. A speedboat. The guys on it were saying it goes 70mph, which is quite fast!
‘The trip was good. I have the house with my daughter and stuff at home and when you are getting rehab here, you are not really focussing on that when you get home at night. When I went over there it was so focussed on getting better, which was good actually.
My partner wanted to come but it was strict business. Having that time away and a bit of heat for it as well was probably quite good. It is still an ongoing thing. I have still got to get rehab and physio each day for it but it is fine.’
Russell’s quick comeback immediately boosted Bath’s title odds. The Scotsman has instilled a sense of belief in a team that finished bottom of the table just two years ago. He has ignited their attack, which was previously geared towards short-range tries inside the 22, by maximising the threat of powerful strike runners such as Joe Cokanasiga.
‘What I hear is the belief in the team has gone up and boys have got a lot of confidence. Something I have tried to do is give the younger guys belief in their ability,’ Russell said.
‘We have had a few breakaway tries from deep, we have had a lot of maul tries, pick and goes. We have threats all over the pitch so it is easier for me to chuck the ball and put them under pressure.
‘Our kicking game has been good. It has not just been attack all season. We have had calculated games where we have had to kick more and we can always rely on that if we need to. If we go to the air, we can back our boys to get it back.
Twickenham has been a happy hunting ground for the Scottish No 10 as he goes in search of more silverware to add to his collection
‘If we are having to chase the game, I will tell Ben Spencer to give me the ball as quick as possible and I will try and do something. If it is a tight game, I will say, “You take control”. The relationship we have built off the pitch shows on the pitch.’
Russell will be mic’d up for Saturday’s fixture so viewers will be able to hear every word as he attempts to end Bath’s barren trophy run. His side are underdogs for the fixture – Fin Smith will be hoping to find holes in their defence – but Twickenham has been a happy hunting ground for the Scottish No 10.
Russell may well be the best play-maker in Europe but his trophy collection is thin. ‘I think I have only been in three finals and won one – with Glasgow nine years ago,’ he said.
‘Hopefully, we win at the weekend and the record goes up to 50 per cent from 33 per cent! I have had a brilliant career already, but I would like to get some more silverware and have that alongside your name.
‘The later I am getting in my career, the more I want to get something. It doesn’t come around that often, so I think when you get chances like we have this weekend it is about capitalising and making sure we win it.’
Northampton’s Fin Smith will be hoping to find holes in the Bath defence at Twickenham
Smith weighs 91kg through the week but aims to bulk up to 93kg for matchday through carb loading
Only a few years ago, Fin Smith was mimicking Finn Russell’s tricks while still at Warwick School. His favourite?
The nutmeg Russell pulled off against Munster during his days at Racing 92. ‘At school, Finn was the guy doing stuff you tried to copy when you were out on the fields at lunchtime,’ says Smith, 22, who will be starting against Russell for the first time in Saturday’s Premiership final.
‘It was the classic, shoes off, ties off, top few buttons undone, and getting stuck in. You’d come back in, stinking of sweat in maths in the first period after lunch and no-one wants to sit next to you.
I tried that nutmeg about five games in a row when I was at Warwick; it got blocked every time! ‘He (Russell) has been unbelievable for Bath this year. I think he probably doesn’t get the credit he deserves for the impact on the game management he’s had there. It’s not just all the highlights reel stuff he’s known for.
It’s going to be a great test for me but it will be cool for me as well.’ Back in those school days, Smith was a skinny teenager on the books of the Worcester academy. Now 23, he is approaching his fighting weight for Saturday’s showdown fixture, following a collective bulking programme at Northampton.
‘I was very skinny until I was about 17 when Worcester told me to go on what they called a dirty bulk. Porridge with peanut butter and Nutella every morning. Then you were on burgers and pizza for lunch.
‘I got up to about 85kg and I had the biggest belly on me for a skinny guy. I am still trying to get rid of it now!‘ In pre-season at Northampton this year, there was a collective push to see how much size we could put on. It was a slightly healthier way of doing it!
‘We got beaten up in the semi-final away to Saracens last year and afterwards we all agreed we were a bit small and needed a few more kilos. We put on a combined 35kg of muscle across the squad.
‘We were all a bit slow for the next few weeks but then we found a nice mid-point and we have seen the benefits in our game.’ Like a boxer, Smith weighs 91kg through the week but aims to bulk up to 93kg for matchday through carb loading, cookies and protein shakes.
The extra weight has been key this season. Northampton’s electric attack has been in place for a couple of years but they have forged a physicality and resilience to get them through the more abrasive battles.
Smith will be starting against Russell for the first time in Saturday’s Premiership final
‘We have had the ability far more this year to carry if there is nothing on, give it to the big guys and get go-forward,’ Smith says. ‘That is so important.
‘As soon as you are going backwards it is a tough game for the best players in the world, let alone me. The extra weight has been really useful on both sides of the ball. It has made a big difference for us.’
It has given the players an edge in one-on-one battles, while they have also topped this season’s tackle tallies. Their development has been organic. Former director of rugby Chris Boyd deserves credit for nurturing the club’s academy, which has been supplemented with a long-term approach to recruitment.
There have been no quick-fix superstars. Smith is a prime example. ‘They picked me up after 25 Premiership games. I wasn’t pulling up trees or doing anything spectacular,’ he adds.
‘I have quite literally reviewed every decision I have made since I have joined here. When I joined Northampton, they were an unbelievable attacking team and I was a bit like a kid in a candy shop, wanting to run the ball from everywhere because we had so many amazing attacking threats.
Now I have understood a bit more about saving the forwards’ legs and when we have lost momentum, we don’t want the ball. We are such a good defensive team now.
‘I joined late to it all but guys like Alex Mitchell, George Furbank, Tommy Freeman and Fraser Dingwall have been coming through for the last five or six years, laying the foundation for it all. Guys like myself, Trevor Davidson, Curtis Langdon and Tom Pearson who have come in this season have added a small piece to the puzzle but they have been growing this for ages. Without the work these guys have been doing, without Chris giving them opportunities, there is no way we would be in this situation.’
They are a young team with a collective spirit. They last won the Premiership crown in 2014 and victory on Saturday would provide the perfect old guard farewell for the likes of Courtney Lawes, Lewis Ludlam and Alex Waller.
It would be Smith’s biggest achievement yet. A place in the ring with Russell and the chance to prove that he is ready to take over England’s No 10 jersey this summer after making his Test debut during the Six Nations.
Smith will also be out to impress England boss Steve Borthwick, who urged the 22-year-old to lead his team to victory
‘Hopefully we can win on Saturday, big celebrations on Sunday, and then fly over to Japan with England on Wednesday. It’s pretty fast paced stuff,’ Smith says. ‘But it’s what you want to be doing, isn’t it?.
‘These matches are as close as you can get to a Test match or a big international knock-out game. Steve Borthwick’s been really clear. He’s wanted to see me play well all the time but particularly lead a team to winning stuff. There is no better opportunity than Saturday for me to stake my claim by doing that.’
