BATH will pick their strongest available side at Exeter in Saturday’s Champions Cup last 16 with head coach Johann van Graan billing it as a massive game for the 1998 winners.
It is nine years since Bath last reached the knock-out stages and as a former head coach of Munster, van Graan places a high value on the tournament.
“It is an incredible competition,” said van Graan. “It pitches the best teams in the league together and I grew to love it at Munster where the support home and away was unbelievable.
“It is a massive game for us because of the nineyear wait and we are looking forward to it. We have big games coming up in the Champions Cup and the Premiership and our plan is to be alive in both competitions for as long as possible.
“We are dreaming big dreams but we are doing it in a humble way. Who knows what the future will bring? Bath have carried the burden of the past and what happened in 1998 for too long.”
It is van Graan’s second season in charge at the Rec and he has helped turn Bath from a club that battled to avoid finishing bottom of the Premiership to one intent on winning the competition for the first time.
Van Graan has regularly rotated his team this season and sent a virtual reserve side to Leicester over the Christmas period so his leading players could have 10 days off.
“There is a very fine balance in selection every club has to strike,” he said. “We have five games left and potentially more to come if we perform. We have managed the squad well and you have to be able to adapt.
“Some weeks might see more changes than others depending on what happens but the stakes are now very high. We will keep with the policy and see how the next few weeks develop.
“The squad trust the system and the communication is very good. We all know where we want to end up. There is amazing competition in the squad and whether you play for your national team does not guarantee you selection every week.
“Big games are coming up and we see them as an opportuni
