George Skivington: Gloucester head coach on their rise from bottom dogs to contenders

Gloucester's team unity is credited with bringing them much of their success so far this season

Roll the clock back 12 months and Gloucester were enduring a torrid Premiership run of eight consecutive defeats, with just one win to their name.

They were rooted to the bottom of the table and the appointment of head coach George Skivington was raising questions.

A year on and the Cherry and Whites' turnaround could hardly look more stark. Their Premiership win tally stands at nine, already more than they managed for the whole of last season.

Last summer they finished second from bottom while, as things stand, they are flying high in third and look like contenders.

"The difference this year really is that we did so much work last year," Skivington told BBC Sport.

Skivington was 37 and had never been a head coach before he was given the top job at Kingsholm.

While he has got a "pretty thick skin," he knows Gloucester is a small town and "you don't want to sit in a coffee shop and have people tell you you're rubbish, that's for sure".

"There were a fair few times last year where I would have sat groups down and said 'keep the faith, keep going'," he said.

"The beauty of last year as a group is we've felt that heat, we felt the judgement and we certainly don't want to go back there. But I saw some brilliant people roll up their sleeves and just knuckle down and crack on."

'Crazy first year'

Gloucester's improvement is evident all over the pitch, and in all competitions they have won 10 of their past 13 matches.

They have scored 47 tries after 14 Premiership matches, an increase of two on last season's overall total. They have one of the best penalty kicking success rates, the highest number of tackles and their maul is the most dominant in the league.

When Skivington was appointed he did not know the other staff or players, and insists much of the turnaround is the fruition of that bedding-in period.

"It really does take time to find the way you work together," he said. "I would have had a thought process of how I would have liked to run things, and I found guys with amazing qualities and strengths that I can harness.

"Over time I can trust them to deal with things or deliver messages how I want them delivered.

"All that stuff combined with a playing group we didn't know, combined with changing all the systems, it was a crazy first year."

Former lock Skivington took over at Kingsholm in 2020 for his first role as a head coach

Gloucester lost seven matches by a margin of seven points or less last season and their ability to close out games this season they might otherwise have lost is notable.

"Occasionally we came unstuck with saying 'we know we can win this, there's 10 minutes to go, we're two points down, how are we going to win it?'

"Now everyone's aligned as to 'this is how we see it, this is how we all see together and you've got to make smart decisions on the pitch'. There's probably just a better alignment and understanding."

'You can't whip a team together'

The core of the Gloucester squad has remained since Skivington's arrival, with captain Lewis Ludlow, Jonny May, Mark Atkinson, Ben Morgan, Ruan Ackermann and Freddie Clarke among those with more than 100 games for the club under their belt.

Others have been given opportunities they had previously found limited, and it has helped create a bond off the field that is proving hugely beneficial on it.

"I don't personally think the way to building a successful squad is necessarily signing loads of superstars," Skivington said.

"You've got to be together a long time to go, 'I know we'll pull through, I know you're tight with me, we've had enough experiences together' - whether that's here, on a night out or having relationship issues and your mate has been there.

"You can't whip a team together and say we're a great group because those things that happen away from the pitch, they happen over time."

Gloucester's maul has been a dominant force, producing more tries than any other team this term

That team unity is exemplified by Gloucester's driving maul, an area that has defined their style, producing almost 30 tries in all competitions and gaining metres all over the pitch.

As a former lock, Skivington admits he just "loves mauling". He has had calls from coaches all over the world attempting to discover the secret of its success, but says it is nothing more than putting in the hours on the training field.

"It's something I wanted to create a bit of a culture around. I know traditionally Gloucester was set-piece dominant and The Shed loved it, and I wanted to try and get that buzz around here again," he said.

"It's probably the best area of the game for showing how tight you are as a group because if one of you doesn't work hard and blows his roll, then the maul doesn't work."

Gloucester have finished in the Premiership's top three only once in the past decade. To do so again this year would be a significant step forward, even more so in the context of last season.

Still, Skivington isn't getting ahead of himself.

"The boys probably take pride in different things than they did 18 months ago and it's starting to get results," he said.

"The pleasure with it as a coach, the exciting bit, is when you walk in to get a coffee and there's four lads sitting around talking about the kicking game or the strategy.

"Sometimes you bring it up and they've got all the answers already. That's the real growth in this group."