Fairy tale or horror story – only one can close the book on the return of the native

Jack Rowell Interview: Second coming to Bath recalls glory days of English club rugby. Tim Glover hears it will take hard work to relive them

As Jack Rowell held court in the clubhouse at the Recreation Ground it was tempting to imagine that for Bath it was just like old times. The reality, however, was very different. Rowell was flanked not by West Countrymen but by three coaches, Michael Foley, Brian Smith and Richard Graham, Australians all, and a new captain in Danny Grewcock, whose roots are in the Midlands. This is not the way it was.

Isn't it something of an oddity, Jack was asked, that you now find yourself surrounded by men from Queensland? "It's not an oddity," he replied, "it's bloody frightening. I'm a true Englishman in an ethnic minority. We should be concerned about where are the up-and-coming English coaches of the future." The Aussies remained expressionless. They were all wearing the gold jerseys of Bath's alternative kit. Jack chooses his own wardrobe.

Under Rowell, and before the game turned professional, Bath took English rugby union by the scruff of the neck, winning five league championships and the national knockout cup eight times during the Eighties and Nineties. They were virtually unbeatable at the Rec and at Twickenham, which became their second home.

Rowell, a successful businessman, was in charge from 1978 to 1994, and it was from 1984 that Bath really began to dominate. Only Leicester in the professional era have matched or even surpassed that level, but it is difficult to foresee the Tigers falling apart as Bath did last season. Only Leeds finished below them in the Zurich Premiership and it is as well that the Bunker, as the squad office is known at the Rec, has padded walls. At the dog end of the season, relegation became a serious threat.

Rowell, born in Hartlepool and a one-time captain of Gosforth, has lived in Bath for 25 years. "In town, people would come up to my wife and tell her it was time I came back." As the pressure mounted and Jon Callard, the head coach, was made an offer he couldn't accept, Rowell was sounded out. He met Andrew Brown-sword, the reclusive owner and chief executive of the club, and agreed to become director of rugby for the next two years.

"It will take that amount of time to re-establish Bath as a box-office business," Rowell said. At the very least. Season-ticket sales perked up and people approached Jack in the street. " 'Thank God,' they said, or words to the equivalent," . It was very nice of them to shake my hand and welcome me back. I enjoy the game and the people in it. When the opportunity to rejoin Bath presented itself I couldn't resist the challenge. It's a big step." Jack, a very tall man, has big feet.

Where are the England coaches? Well, Callard is a case in point. He joined Bath from Newport in 1989, fitted the club ethos and scored all his side's points in the 19-18 victory over Brive in 1998 when Bath became the first English side to lift the Heineken Cup. When Andy Robinson left the Rec to join Clive Woodward and the England coaching staff in 2000, Callard was promoted, and in his first season they were third in the Premiership. Last December, Foley, the former Wallabies' hooker, joined as assistant coach. "For some time I've recognised the need for another full-time coach," Callard said at the time. "We're fortunate to have found someone of Michael's calibre." In March, Brownsword announced a major structural review: Foley would be team director with overall responsibility. Callard declined to continue as coach. He has now joined Leeds.

The return of Rowell represents another review. "I will have overall responsibility for all playing matters," Jack said, "and I will work closely with Michael Foley and the other coaches to develop a squad and infrastructure that is capable of competing at the highest level. I'm there to give direction and motivation. I'll talk to the players and hope they will bounce things off me. My experience should help."

Rowell left his beloved Bath eight years ago for a higher calling – to manage England. He took them to the Grand Slam in 1995, but the same year saw his World Cup dream in South Africa, which had been kept alive by Rob Andrew's drop goal against Australia, destroyed by the All Blacks and Jonah Lomu. Rowell reluctantly relinquished the England job in 1997. The Rugby Football Union wanted him to take on the post full-time but he was also an executive director of Dalgety, a public company. "The chairman of the company didn't think I could do both jobs. He did not think it was good for the shareholders if they kept reading about me in the sports pages."

Although he has since left Dalgety, he sat on the board of eight different companies and is still involved with four, even though he regards the director of rugby's role at Bath as a full-time occupation. In 1998, when Malcolm Pearce saved Bristol from bankruptcy, Rowell joined the board as a non-executive director and became managing director two years ago. It did not stop him pitching up at the bar at the Rec on match days, when disaffected supporters would buy him a pint and ask him where it had all gone wrong.

"I always followed the fortunes of Bath," he said. "I invested 15 years in the club and it's a way of life. I left for the right reasons. We had just won the Double and I thought, 'What a wonderful time to leave'. I've been observing from a distance and I didn't enjoy watching Bath last season. It looked like they were in freefall. It was a dangerous scenario. The grim reaper was knocking loudly on the back door. When I was asked to come back I felt the time was right."

He has already identified changes he wants to make but is restricted by existing contracts and the salary cap. "I would like to sprinkle a little stardust. In the end the quality of the players will decide whether Bath are successful. I think we've got a good team and by that I mean 15 good players, but we need more. You can't take anything for granted in the Premiership because the standard goes up every year, as do the numbers of imported players and coaches. When you have somebody of the class of Wayne Smith at Northampton you realise we've come a long way, but maybe we've now reached the stage, like football, where it's become unhealthy. We need English-qualified players and the equivalent on the coaching side."

When Bath reigned, Rowell ran an exceptional group of players who had the right mix of cavalry and infantry – farmers, doctors, headbangers, all for one and one for all. And it was a close-knit family, which makes Rowell's new task look all the more difficult. He calls it the X factor. "I visited Leicester last season and we were talking about their success. They said, 'It's very straightforward, Jack. We copied what Bath did'. I'm not quite sure whether that was a nice thing for them to say, and I'm still equivocal about it. Leicester have the X factor and Bath have to rediscover it.

"Bob Dwyer [the former Australia and Leicester coach] once said to me that in the amateur era Bath were professional. We managed our way through the game. All the coaches were managers who understood the rugby business and everybody worked very hard. The players were encouraged to be part of the management thinking. It helped that they were bright. Last year everything was too footloose and the management aspect was neglected."

Last season Bath were hit by a rash of injuries to high-profile players, including Matt Perry, who is still recovering from a back problem, Iain Balshaw, Kevin Maggs, Gareth Cooper, Mike Tindall and Mike Catt. Catt, recovered from a shoulder operation, has signed on for another year. "His presence is crucial," Rowell said. "Apart from Catt, the guys who had the culture of winning have all gone. He is the last vestige of that. We will have to reinvent ourselves for the 21st century and the new coaching team can play a major part. When you build a winning momentum it sometimes runs on itself even though there may be decay beneath the surface. There is no quick fix.

"Once you lose your place in the pecking order it is immediately filled and sealed over. Kick-starting this operation from a position of second from bottom will not be straightforward. To begin with we need more leaders in the dressing room, more people willing to take responsibility rather than hide behind others."

Enter captain Grewcock, with Catt and Dan Lyle as vice-captains. Jonathan Humphreys, who replaces Mark Regan at hooker, is a former Wales captain who will also be expected to contribute. Given Grewcock's disciplinary record, he may need ready-made leaders around him. "Grewcock virtually chose himself for the role by his standing in English rugby, his standing in the club, even the way he trains," Rowell said. "The moment some young professionals get a contract they think they've made it. Grewcock is a role model and he'll captain by example, a Martin Johnson type.

"Bath's injuries last year were allowed to hide certain deficiencies. The style of rugby for one thing. They were knocking on the door of defences but had no answer. Because of the casualty list young players had to come in. It's one thing for a youngster to have experienced players either side of him, but when you have inexperience left and right it becomes an unfair contest. There was a significant lowering of morale, and by thought and deed we're going to change that situation.

"There is, though, a high injury rate in English rugby and that needs to be looked at. We have some players who will not be fit for next season. The intensity of the hits means that the body could be tackled two or three ways at the same time, and if you're not fit you're going to get injured. Physical conditioning in this country is underplayed. Look at Australian centres. They're all 16 or 17 stone. Our guys are physically not ready for it. It's not a question of spending a couple of months in the gym."

In addition to the Australian coaching staff, Bath have recruited another from Down Under in Chris Mallac. As head of physical preparation he will co-ordinate strength conditioning. Mike Yates, formerly of Saracens, joins as fitness coach.

By contrast, player recruitment has been modest and there has been the messy collapse of the deal that was meant to bring the former Wallaby flanker Mark Connors to the Rec. In come Alessio Galasso, a prop from Montferrand, Adam Vander and Ross Blake from Bristol and the stand-off Chris Malone (another Aussie) from National League One side Exeter.

The photographs in the clubhouse serve as a reminder of the glorious past – Clarke, Callard, Chilcott, Hill, Hall, Halliday, Robinson, Redman, Barnes, Guscott, Dawe, Ubogu et al. When Victor Ubogu once asked Big Jack why he took an instant dislike to him, the coach replied: "It saves time".

Responsible for the rise of Bath, Rowell now has to arrest the decline, and two years is not a long time in which to do it. "Our goal is to get back into the Heineken Cup, which means we'll have to double the number of wins. That's a major ask, but it has come from within the squad. If you want to be part of an ambitious club it makes it attractive for others to come in. It is important that we are described as a South-west club. We need that geography to carry us through and the support of the people is another factor. When Bath were facing the precipice last season the crowd were still vociferous. When you're in business you either find a way ahead or fail."

As Big Jack left the bar somebody wished him good luck. "I'll need it," he replied. He's right. One of the players has a BMW convertible with a personalised number plate. And he's a prop.

Biography: Jack Rowell

Born: Hartlepool. Lives: Bath. Age: 65.

As a player: Captain of Gosforth.

Bath coaching honours: League title 1988-89, 1990-91, 1991-92, 1992-93, 1993-94; John Player Cup 1983-84, 1984-85, 1985-86, 1986-87; Pilkington Cup 1988-89, 1989-90, 1991-92, 1993-94.

England honours: Grand Slam 1995. Parted company with the RFU in 1997, having won two championships, three Triple Crowns and reached the semi-finals of the 1995 World Cup. Under him, England won 21 out of 29 matches.

Since then: Joined Bristol in 1998 as a non-executive director and in 2000 became managing director. Rejoined Bath two months ago as director of rugby.