WHERE DID YOUR RUGBY JOURNEY START?

It started when I first picked up the ball in my first year at Beechen Cliff. There was such a big turnout for rugby practice, that I couldn’t turn down the opportunity of trying something new. It turned out I really enjoyed it. I saw that I wasn’t too bad at it and just kept going throughout school.

WHICH PLAYER DO YOU LOOK UP TO?

I wasn’t hugely into rugby growing up in Bath, but when I watched it on TV from time to time, the person that really stood out was (Semesa) Rokoduguni. It was his style and how he was so powerful made him so exciting to watch.

He just has everything – he’s quick, he’s insane in the air and someone that I aspire to be in terms of his raw talent.

I’ve had a couple of experiences training with him and even just being beside him doing a simple drill, you learn so much. I don’t believe when people say that you shouldn’t meet your heroes because I’ve learnt so much already from him in such a short space of time.

WHAT DO YOU HOPE TO LEARN FROM THE BACK THREE DIVISION IN THE FIRST TEAM SQUAD?

Each player has something unique about them. Joe Cokanasiga is huge and his style is completely different to Anthony Watson. Looking at how they train and play each match and seeing what I can take from each of them gives me something different to put into my own game.

REFLECTION ON 2018/19

On Beechen Cliff

That (getting to the AASE Final) was definitely one of the best times of my life so far. When I started playing rugby and every Wednesday afternoon, I see the AASE team play great rugby from my tutor window and thought how incredible it would be to be one of those boys playing. It was incredible to not only play for the school, but to take it to the next level.

I was thinking about it after the loss in the AASE Final at Allianz and that experience is going to improve me more having lost that game than if we’d won because I have something more to drive for

On Bath Rugby U18s

The whole experience bought everyone together. We played with a great deal of flair and that really worked for us in terms of put holes in the opposition. It was great to have that first game at the Rec – it gave us that real boost to play at a really special place in front of a big crowd.

PLAYING FOR BATH UNITED

It was something that I was striving for in terms of getting a few minutes for the United team. To play at the Rec and get that experience of what it’s like to be a professional player was really special. To start that last game against Bristol really capped off my year and my schoolboy rugby life.

WHAT SKILLS WILL YOU BRING TO THE SQUAD

I think I bring raw power and energy to the team. When the boys are down, I’ve been the one to be the loudest and really get the team going.

It might not be that I make it into the first team, but the next year is about making a good impact, getting tight with the boys and really pushing forwards.

FELLOW ACADEMY TEAMMATE GEORGE WORBOYS ON HAMER-WEBB

“He is a really good friend. He started playing rugby a lot later than most people and came from a football background.

“He is a very focused individual - he’s driven and he works hard. He is always striving to become a better player and that is great to be around because he gives off positive energy.

"He is strong and tackles hard and he is pretty fast, and he scores a lot of tries, which helps the team grind out results.”

In the spotlight - Gabriel Hamer-Webb

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