Tom Dunn arrives for our interview at Bathtub’s palatial Farleigh Home coaching complicated in his shorts and vest accompanied by his five-month-old labrador, Tilly.
It makes for a placing distinction – the fearsome tattooed determine with weeping cauliflower ears who appears all set to go on some excessive seas raid and his modern, elegant, loveable sidekick.
One seems much more strokeable than the opposite however ask Ben Spencer, Bathtub’s captain, about his piratical hooker and he comes over all misty-eyed.
“Dunny is a superb human being,” he mentioned. “He’s our sensible human being. We love him to bits.”
Born within the metropolis 31 years in the past, Dunn has seen and lived all of it with Bathtub Rugby – from the doldrum years to the present crest of a wave which sees the membership 80 minutes from Twickenham and a spot within the Premiership ultimate.
Twelve years on from his debut towards Calvisano, he’s the membership’s longest-serving participant – a continuing in a whirlpool of change as Bathtub have gone by means of incarnation after incarnation within the hope of rediscovering the system which made them English rugby’s pre-eminent pressure again within the 90s.
When he took his first steps, Bathtub had been in the course of a run of 4 successive titles. Again then you definately imagined their success would final eternally however each dynasty is time restricted and it has been a very long time between drinks since.
Do I really feel like we’re in a very good place? Sure, I do. Is that this the perfect I’ve felt about our crew in 15 years? Sure, it’s.
Unbelievably, it’s 28 years since Bathtub had been final English champions. Is that this their time then?
“It’s a very exhausting query to reply as a result of I’ve by no means received something. I don’t know what it seems like,” mentioned Dunn.
“Do I really feel like we’re in a very good place? Sure, I do. Is that this the perfect I’ve felt about our crew in 15 years? Sure, it’s.
“So if we’re adequate to win it, I believe you get what you deserve.”
A lot has been made from the affect of excellent incomers like Finn Russell, Ollie Lawrence and Alfie Barbeary in serving to to show Bathtub into contenders once more and so they have performed their half, however each membership wants its basis stones.
If there may be one man who personifies Bathtub Rugby it’s Dunn.
You’d think about given the prevailing success in Bathtub on the time that there would have been one thing within the air which naturally drew him to rugby however truly soccer got here first. He was a helpful central defender who performed in the identical faculty backline as one Tyrone Mings.
“I headed the whole lot and he chased the whole lot,” mentioned Dunn. “We had a reasonably first rate defence to be truthful.
“I performed loads of soccer till I used to be 14 however then I principally bought the flawed form for soccer and possibly the flawed temperament as nicely and rugby took off.”
I labored in Starbucks, I labored on web site doing lead-work roofing – I truly did that on James Dyson’s home. I labored behind a bar, I labored on a farm washing carrots. It wasn’t a standard route.
He joined the Bathtub academy – as a prop initially – and threw himself into rugby as his desired profession path however he needed to scrap his approach there.
He was not given his first full-time contract till he was 21 which meant incomes cash the place he might.
“I labored in Starbucks, I labored on web site doing lead-work roofing – I truly did that on James Dyson’s home. I labored behind a bar, I labored on a farm washing carrots. It wasn’t a standard route,” he mentioned.
“I assumed I used to be adequate to be knowledgeable participant however it took me a very long time to get picked. That gave me this chip on my shoulder that I used to be going to show individuals flawed and that I’d do it my approach which drove me, I believe, proper the way in which up till 2020 and my England debut.”
The three caps underneath Eddie Jones – received, sadly, within the solitude of Covid – lastly put his thoughts at relaxation on that entrance however he isn’t one made to relaxation on his laurels.
He stays a pushed particular person however one fuelled now by a extra optimistic pressure.
“I believe it’s making my household proud and leaving extra of a legacy than simply having performed X quantity of video games for Bathtub,” he mentioned.
“I wish to depart one thing that’s tangible, one thing that we will look again on in 15 years’ time and say: ‘We received that.’
“After we had been rising up, individuals talked concerning the golden period and your Jeremy Guscotts, your Gareth Chilcotts and your Nigel Redmans successful issues there.
“I’d love my youngsters to have the ability to say: ‘Do you keep in mind Spencer, Ewels, Dunn?’”
The most important distinction with this DOR in comparison with ones I’ve had previously is he’s massively safe with what he does and what he desires…That bleeds down by means of the crew, that belief and perception you’ve got in different individuals.
In-form Sale stand in Bathtub’s approach within the semi-final. Having seen them off 42-24 at The Rec within the common league season two months in the past, the house crew begin because the favourites.
“It was a good recreation however we pulled away within the final 20,” he mentioned. “I believe that recreation most likely confirmed the standard of our squad. The replacements that got here on made a large impression.”
Bathtub’s depth is a trump card forward of the play-offs however there may be additionally an assurance concerning the aspect lately underneath the earnest Johann van Graan, who has taken the crew from all-time low of the Premiership when he arrived two years in the past.
“I believe the most important distinction with this DOR in comparison with ones I’ve had previously is he’s massively safe with what he does and what he desires,” mentioned Dunn.
“When somebody is massively safe, I believe that bleeds down by means of the crew, that belief and perception you’ve got in different individuals.
“Bathtub Rugby is a large ship and it was going through the flawed approach. You don’t flip it round in quarter-hour however by the tip of final season you most likely noticed the ship beginning to flip.
“After which we hit the bottom operating this yr and I believe the ship’s stepping into the proper course now.”
Successful makes such a distinction. The place we had been three years in the past, the conversations weren’t as good.
As Van Graan famous this week, the locals are starting to imagine reasonably than hope now.
“There’s not one side of my life that doesn’t have a relationship with Bathtub Rugby and if I do the varsity pick-up, all individuals wish to speak to me about is: ‘nicely carried out on the weekend, such vibe, we’re so excited’. Then if I do the nursery drop-off, it’s like: ‘good recreation on the weekend’ and once I take the youngsters swimming, the instructors are like: ‘Oh, nicely carried out.’” mentioned Dunn.
“Successful makes such a distinction. The place we had been three years in the past, the conversations weren’t as good.”
If Bathtub can end the job off this season, there would even be a business spin-off alternative for Dunn.
Having carried out butchery work expertise, he runs a Hog Roast enterprise which caters for weddings, festivals and different celebration occasions – Bathtub’s first title since 1996 would definitely qualify on that rating.
He doesn’t fancy the accountability although, given he could be on a bender a lifetime within the making.
“I’m going to be in control of completely nothing for at the very least per week if that occurs. I can’t be trusted with myself that week.”
