Former England fly-half Stuart Barnes believes that Finn Russell and Bath are missing the influence of their former attack coach Lee Blackett.<\/b><\/p>\n
The West Country outfit, who are the defending champions, have made another good start to the PREM campaign and currently reside in second position.<\/p>\n
However, they were close to back-to-back home defeats after succumbing to Northampton Saints and almost letting a 26-0 lead slip against Exeter Chiefs.<\/p>\n
Russell not at his best<\/p>\n
It has coincided with a slight downturn in form from Russell<\/a>, who hasn\u2019t been quite at his best since the conclusion of the November internationals.<\/p>\n And Barnes believes that Bath<\/a> are now feeling the effects of the loss of Blackett as the club\u2019s attack guru.<\/p>\n Blackett joined the England<\/a> set-up in September after taking a short-term role in Steve Borthwick\u2019s backroom team for the games against Argentina and USA in July.<\/p>\n \u201cLee Blackett, the former Bath coach, is the man formulating the way to turn strategy into tries and victories,\u201d Barnes wrote in the Sunday Times<\/a> column.<\/p>\n \u201cHe is a fine coach. The manner in which Bath \u2013 in Blackett\u2019s absence \u2013 are relying more and more on their five-metre pick-and-drive suggests a team massively missing him. An unwelcome but innate conservatism is stifling even Finn Russell.<\/p>\n \u201cIn football, Arsenal and their set pieces dominate. In rugby the five-metre lineout is the first-choice option to score a try.<\/p>\n \u201cBacks moves are occasional gems, happily remembered, but the grist and grind of pick, drive, pick, drive is the modus operandi, its frequently unstoppable patient approach exploited by forwards coaches throughout the professional game. Pretty ugly, but effective.\u201d<\/p>\n Stuart Barnes: Why neither Tommy Freeman nor Ollie Lawrence may be best suited for Springboks-esque England<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n England\u2019s and Bath\u2019s fundamentals<\/p>\n In some ways, both England and Bath have a similar approach to the game, prioritising set-piece, physicality and a strong kicking game, which perhaps shows the influence of Blackett.<\/p>\n Despite a clear focus on the fundamentals, the West Countrymen were an exceptional attacking side in 2024\/25 as they touched down 96 times in 18 games domestically \u2013 one more than the next best, Bristol Bears.<\/p>\n And since Blackett\u2019s arrival in the international set-up, firstly on a part-time basis before making it permanent ahead of the 2025 end-of-year series, the Red Rose have looked effective in attack.<\/p>\n As Barnes admits, England will never be a free-flowing outfit, but having that cutting edge will prove crucial in challenging the Springboks.<\/p>\n \u201cEngland won\u2019t worry about the beauty contest. They are going to be performing at a more pressurised level, physically and psychologically,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n \u201cBorthwick is not the obsessive, kick for kick\u2019s sake coach he was in the 2023 World Cup, but he is not going to allow England to become an international version of Northampton.\u201d<\/p>\n Want more from Planet Rugby? Add us as\u00a0a preferred source on Google to your favourites list<\/a>\u00a0for world-class coverage you can trust.<\/p>\n