In 2006/07, Steve Borthwick endured a frustrating start to his second season as club captain. He had missed England’s summer tour to Australia with a knee injury, but was fighting fit for Bath come September. He scored a try in the marvellous four-try victory over Leicester at the Rec on 9th, but further knee problems forced him to sit on the sidelines again until the end of December.
Since his return, he has renewed his effective second-row partnership with Danny Grewcock, which has been so potent a combination for both club and country. He has 27 England caps, and having been named in the EPS squad for 2006/07, was in the Saxons squad during the autumn, before being called up to the England training squad for the World Cup in June.
He has long been renowned for his superb set-piece skills but he also appears all over the pitch as a ball-carrier, making valuable yards and steering the ship. He is regarded as a model professional by many of his peers and his maturity often masks the fact that he is still only 27 years old.
As a player he is never happy with his performances and will always look to go one better. As a captain he was hugely disappointed with defeats in both the Powergen Cup and Heineken Cup semi-finals in 2006, and in the final of the European Challenge Cup in 2007, and firmly believes that the current Bath Rugby side has the potential to win a major trophy. Under his firm leadership he will do his utmost to make this happen.
