Newcastle Falcons consultant director of rugby Steve Diamond is calling Bath “the Galacticos” of the Premiership before their meeting this weekend.
Bath lead the table by 15 points and are all but guaranteed a play-off spot with four games to go.
The West Country side top the league, have already won the Premiership Rugby Cup and play Edinburgh in the semi-final of the European Challenge Cup as they chase a treble.
“They are the new Saracens,” said Diamond. “They’ve put together a massive squad and a squad that is set to be good for years.
“We’re coming up against the Galacticos of rugby, who have done magnificently to get that squad under the salary cap.”
Bath were the powerhouses in the early days of English league rugby, winning the title six times out of the first nine editions in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
But they have not been champions since 1996. In the era of the Premiership play-offs, they have reached the Twickenham final on three occasions but have lost every time.
The most recent was last year’s 25-21 loss to Northampton Saints but Johann van Graan’s side have come back even stronger.
Bath have been financially backed by millionaire owner Bruce Craig since 2010, with last month’s Premiership Rugby Cup their first trophy for 17 years.
Diamond, who takes his bottom-of-the-table Falcons to face them on Saturday, believes domestic rugby could be heading for an era of dominance for the men from the Rec, similar to Saracens and their six titles between 2011 and 2023.
“A lot of the other clubs spend the same as Bath but they seem to have got their act together,” he added.
“They’ve got their recruitment right and they’ve not done that in memory. I don’t think they’ve ever been in the shape they are now and it’s taken years of Bruce’s ownership.
“It just shows you can’t buy a team. Bath have been ever present in the league for 25, 30 years and they’ve not won it. The money is important but it’s your actual recruitment and they seem to have got that spot on.
“With the way they spend their money and work their cap, they have put together a team for many years, not just a one-off hit. That’s what Saracens were able to do.”
Scotland fly-half and marquee player Finn Russell draws the headlines, ably supported by scrum-half and captain Ben Spencer.
There is also South Africa prop Thomas du Toit, England duo Ollie Lawrence and Sam Underhill and a host of rising young English talent in the ranks.
It all helps to make Bath the envy of the rest of the Premiership.
“Coaching is important but at the end of the day, it’s the cattle you’ve got to prod that is most important,” said Diamond.
“If you’ve got world-class players in the half-backs, like Spencer and Finn Russell, it makes a real difference. That’s what Bath do, they ooze class.”
