Bath’s big gamble on Finn Russell is paying off… the No 10 has changed their psyche from a team shredded of confidence to one ready for the fight

After a moment of Finn Russell brilliance on Saturday, the cameras panned to Bruce Craig’s box behind the posts. Sitting beside billionaire sponsor Sir James Dyson, the Bath owner allegedly muttered: ‘I think he’s worth my money’.

Craig’s track record of big-ticket rugby investments has been questionable. Sam Burgess: disappeared without a trace after his first year. Toby Faletau: a regular on the medical bed. Jamie Roberts, Stephen Donald, Danny Cipriani: past their best.

I remember then-coach Mike Ford looking at me as if he had seen a ghost when we made eye contact in the restaurant of the Vineyard Hotel in Cape Town back in 2015. He was having lunch with the iconic but fading Springbok lock Victor Matfield. That move never materialised — but you get the gist.

Bath have always liked a glamour signing — it is a glamorous city, after all — but their shiny recruits have rarely lived up to their billing. It has been a desperate quest to get the club back to their glory days, when the likes of Jeremy Guscott got their hands on their last trophy back in 1998.

In Russell, the Scottish magician, they are finally seeing signs of a return on their investment. They have picked up the No 10 in his prime and on Saturday he kicked 16 points to steer Bath towards a final against Northampton. Russell was not at his best on the day. He was out-kicked by George Ford but it did not matter.

Russell kicked 16 points to steer Bath towards a final against Northampton on Saturday

What did matter was the impact he has had on his team-mates. They know he is a baller. They watched him nonchalantly scrolling through playlists on his phone as he went through his kicking routines before kick-off.

He has changed their psyche from a team shredded of confidence to a team who stick in the fight when things get tough. Yes, they will be underdogs against Northampton, but their odds are significantly better than they would have been 12 months ago.

‘He is an unbelievable rugby player,’ said his half-back partner Ben Spencer. ‘There is a calmness and class about him that oozes through the team, he gives us so much confidence. He allows boys to be themselves, and what he has added to this group this year has been unbelievable.

‘You watch his highlights and you see cross-field kicks and long passes but underneath that is a really strong defensive game. Some of the tackles and hits he’s put in have been back-row-esque. He reads the game so well.’

Two months ago, Russell tore his groin muscle off the bone. Few expected him to be fit for these play-offs and, without him, Sale may well have won comfortably. Russell’s presence transformed the atmosphere at the Rec. The West Country crowd have endured some sombre years, yet on Saturday there were fans at the ticket office before kick-off, asking what their allocation would be for the final.

The stands were louder than I have ever heard them. Guscott himself was among it, sipping on a glass of red wine, and he must have felt like he was being transported back to the glory days. Even the saxophonist who tried to transform the pitch into a Puerto Banus-style beach bar received a round of applause.

‘This club has had some dark days since I have been here,’ added Spencer. ‘To go from that to where we are now is massive. We sold the Rec out then when we were bottom of the league. These fans are like nothing I have seen, they keep turning up.’

Russell, Bath’s million-pound man, is rugby’s greatest entertainer. A fire-juggling, mature playmaker who should be the front-runner to wear the No 10 jersey for the British and Irish Lions next year. And if he can pull off one of his greatest feats yet by beating Northampton on Saturday, Craig can finally feel like he has got value for money.