Co-captains Tom Cowan and Ludo Kolade aiming high as Bath men’s 1st XV prepare to kick off 2023-24 BUCS Super Rugby season

Tom Cowan and Ludo Kolade are setting their sights high for the 2023-24 BUCS Super Rugby season after being named as co-captains of the University of Bath men’s 1st XV.

Back-row Cowan, from nearby Chippenham, and centre Kolade helped the Bath Building Society-sponsored squad claim a top-four league finish last season and go within a point of reaching the cup final before being denied at the death by eventual double winners Loughborough.

Both believe that Bath, with a host of returning faces bolstered by some exciting freshers, can build on those experiences during the new campaign which gets under way on Wednesday 27th September with a trip to Durham (6.30pm).

Cowan, who combines studying Chemical Engineering at the University with playing for Bath Rugby Academy, said: “It’s a big aim but we want to win the double. We’re good enough to go and do that. We were pretty close last season and there is a lot to build on, I feel like we made a lot of progress as a team. We’ve had a good pre-season so let’s fly into BUCS and win some games.”

Economics student Kolade, who plays Academy rugby for Harlequins, added: “We’ve had an incredibly hot pre-season but we’ve really enjoyed the sun and we’re getting to know each other better. We’ve had lots of new exciting talent come into the squad but we’re also lucky enough to have senior players, like Tom, return to bring their experience.

“We’ve got our sights set on the league and cup but our main focus at the moment is Durham away on the opening day. It’s a long way to go and we don’t want to come back without the win.”

Bath, who are also supported by Rengen, are away for the first three rounds of the new season with the trip to Durham being followed by visits to Loughborough and Leeds Beckett on 4th and 11th October respectively.

Click here to find out more about the BUCS Super Rugby performance programme at the University of Bath.