Sam Warburton on Gallagher Premiership's derby weekend - 'You find out who your leaders are'

As we enter derby weekend in Gallagher Premiership Rugby, TNT Sports pundit and Wales legend Sam Warburton has revealed why he loves these kinds of high-pressure games.

Warburton is no stranger to performing under the most intense spotlight having captained Wales on 49 occasions and the British and Irish Lions twice.

At club level, the 35-year-old plied his trade for Cardiff Blues and discussed what makes a derby so special.

“As a player you love it,” Warburton said on TNT Sports ahead of Bath versus Bristol Bears. “It must be harder for team selection as a coach because normally that session after a selection has a little bit more dialect as the boys are pretty cheesed off they're not picked.

“Whether it's bragging rights or whether it's for international selection, because they're high-pressurised games, as a player and when you're in that environment you find out who your big boys are, who your leaders are because when the sounds are full and the noise is loudest, as the pressure is at its highest, who fronts up.

“There’s two ways you can react to that. Your big-game players, they're the ones who don't hide away and go into their shell, they come out and they fight, so I love these games for those reasons to find out who the big boys are.”

First up, Bath welcome Bristol Bears to the Recreation Ground looking to build on their promising start to this season’s Premiership.

Johann van Graan’s side has been bolstered by the additions of Finn Russell at fly-half and Thomas du Toit in the front row, among others, but fired a warning shot to the rest of the competition that they are far from the finished article.

“The first season was to become tough to beat, get the pride back into the jersey and I'd like to think that we did that last season and then the theme for this season is get better,” Van Graan said.

“We're a long way from where we want to be. We call it our train journey and we’re enjoying the ride this season getting better and who knows where we might be at the back end of the season.

“Hopefully in time we will get to our final destination but for now get better and really enjoy it. Play with a smile on our face and be pragmatic when we need to be.

“When it's wet play a tactical game, when conditions were brilliant like last week it’s great to score four tries in 15 minutes.”

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