Lee Blackett and Richard Blaze join backroom staff at Bath

Former head coach Lee Blackett spent more than seven years in Wasps' backroom staff before the club folded last autumn

Bath have appointed former Wasps head coach Lee Blackett and former Leicester player and coach Richard Blaze as assistant coaches this summer.

Blackett, 40, was one of 167 staff members made redundant last autumn when Wasps went into administration.

He joined Scarlets in November as their backs and skills coach for the remainder of this season.

"He has head coach experience and a fantastic rugby IQ," said Johann van Graan, Bath head of rugby.

"During his career he has improved the abilities of world-class players and we are excited for him to help develop our squad and game in Year 2 of our journey."

Blackett spent more than seven years on the coaching staff at Wasps, first joining as their attack coach in the summer of 2015, with the club reaching the Premiership final during his second season.

In February 2020 he was appointed as interim head coach before taking the job permanently that April.

As a player, Blackett played for Fylde, Leeds Tykes and Rotherham Titans.

"To have the opportunity to work with Johann, the rest of the coaching team and a talented playing group, as well as return to the Premiership, is very exciting for me," Blackett said.

"Bath is a club with rich history, fantastic support and has the infrastructure in place to be successful.

"I look forward to working with a team that has the potential to compete and challenge at the top end of the league."

Blaze retired as a player with the Tigers aged 25 due to injury before joining the backroom staff at Welford Road where he worked in various roles.

The 38-year-old also worked as England Under-20s forwards coach and England women's forwards coach before returning to the Premiership with Wasps.

"I met Richard in the rugby world over a decade ago and he has grown into a very experienced coach since," Van Graan added.

"He is a high calibre person whose expertise lies specifically in the line-out and forward play. The teams he has worked with have shown great physicality and have been confrontational in their play."

Senior squad members depart

Bath confirmed another eight senior players are leaving the club this summer, including lock Will Spencer, prop D'Arcy Rae and scrum-half Max Green.

Spencer progressed through the club's academy and made his debut during the 2011-12 season. He spent two years with Leicester and had a spell at Worcester before rejoining Bath in 2020 and made 13 appearances this season.

Rae has been a regular in the Bath front row since signing in 2021, playing 44 times out of 52 games, while Green has made 45 appearances in six years with Bath.

Full-back Darren Atkins, hooker Tom Doughty, winger Gabriel Hamer-Webb, prop Valeriy Morozov and flanker Wesley White are also departing.

Bath have already confirmed that former England lock Dave Attwood and back-rower Richard de Carpentier are retiring this summer.