Now 27, Bainbridge has had to wait patiently for a full-time Premiership move after a deal to join Bristol at the end of the 2018/19 season fell through at the last minute.
Aside from a brief loan spell at Bath, all of Bainbridge’s senior rugby has been played in the Championship, at Leeds and Jersey Reds and then Coventry.
But now he is bound for the Falcons and excited to be a part of a new-look squad under incoming head coach Alex Codling.
“It’s taken a bit longer than I thought it might of,” he admitted, when talking about the step up to the Premiership. “When I was 21/22, in my last season at Leeds, I went on loan at Bath, and I played some Cup games and some A-League games and at the end of that season I was meant to sign for Bristol but nothing transpired.
“I was at Bristol for three weeks and everything was meant to be going swimmingly but there ended up being nothing so that’s when I went to Jersey.
“You don’t know what it (the Premiership) is like until you get the nod, I think that’s why I am so excited about this move.
“Turning up into pre-season (on Monday), with new faces and new coaches, I am just eager to learn and absorb the environment for what it is.
This story is from the June 11, 2023 edition of The Rugby Paper.
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This story is from the June 11, 2023 edition of The Rugby Paper.
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