Xavier Hastings and George Worboys are the latest Pathway players to agree long-term Academy contracts with Bath Rugby, following U18 teammates Archie Griffin, Gabriel Hamer-Webb, Nahum Merigan and Max Ojomoh, who signed Academy contracts at the start of the year. The signature of these six players from the Academy Pathway is evidence of the Club’s commitment to deliver a 50% homegrown squad by 2023.
Scrum-half Ollie Fox has also pledged his future to Bath Rugby. He will join from Yorkshire Carnegie this summer following his commitments with England U20s at the World Rugby U20 Championship in Argentina, after being confirmed this week as a member of the U20s 28-man squad. Fox featured twice for Bath United during the 2018/19 season, and played an important role in the U20 Six Nations with England. Having played alongside Tom de Glanville in both the England U18 and U20 squads over the past few seasons, he will bring some important experience to the Senior Academy group in 2019/20.
Hastings and Worboys were part of a successful U18 team last season winning six out of their seven games, achieving Bath Rugby’s highest ever finish in the Academy competition.
Hastings featured for England U18s alongside Worboys in England’s fixture against Scotland in March 2018 and has impressed throughout the season with some strong performances for Club and country. A defensively strong back rower, Hastings, who studied at Bishop Wordsworth School, has shown a great willingness to develop his game since switching from centre as an U16.
Worboys was hugely influential in Bath U18s third place finish in the Premiership Rugby U18 Academy League. Comfortable at fly-half and full-back, the Beechen Cliff School pupil is a real attacking threat with ball in hand, and has the intelligence and vision to create scoring opportunities for others. He also featured heavily for England U18s in the Six Nations Festival in April 2018 alongside Nahum Merigan and current Bath Academy U17 players, Orlando Bailey, Ewan Richards and John Stewart.
Andy Rock, said: “These signings all represent important investments in our pathway and in our environment here at Bath Rugby. To add two more home grown players into our full-time environment is a great sign of commitment to our vision and to the talented young men who exist in our region. We are excited to see Xavier and George develop as young men both on and off the field in the years to come, after having already seen them grow on their journeys with us since the age of 14 when they both joined our Academy”
"Ollie Fox joins us as a player who has undoubted potential and a little more experience. It is unusual to have the opportunity to bring in somebody of Ollie’s quality at this stage of their development, as a current U20 international and in such an influential position as scrum-half. We have seen Ollie develop on the international stage this year with England U20s. He is a young man who we believe will add value to the playing squad from day one and who we believe will flourish in our environment and establish himself in the Premiership with us here at Bath.“
