Brown-Bampoe’s ready for second season after a first which exceeded his expectations

A year on from making his debut in the opening round of the PREM in 2024, Paul Brown-Bampoe is looking to hit the ground running for season number two.

Five minutes into the home opener against Leicester Tigers last September, Ben Hammersley was injured and a young, former Durham University winger stepped in for a 75-minute performance on debut. The rest, they say, is history.

Brown-Bampoe said: “I think because it was my first game, I was experiencing the game fully on the bench. I was wired. So luckily, emotionally, I was ready to go on.

“I think one of the first impacts I had was catching the ball in the backfield, which can be kind of nerve-wracking sometimes. As soon as I got that out of the way, I just felt in the flow of things, felt comfortable.”

By the season drew to its end, Brown-Bampoe had made a further 22 appearances, scored 21 tries and made his Investec Champions Cup debut. How would he sum that year up?

Brown-Bampoe said: “It's been incredible. My expectations and what happened exceeded far beyond what I could have imagined at the time. I think going into that year, I just wanted to play a few games for Chiefs so to score as many tries as I did, to play as many games as I did, I definitely feel really grateful that all that happened.”

The experience of last season afforded the 23-year-old to learn from teammates and opponents alike as he played alongside veteran Prem players Jack Yeandle and Henry Slade or against international superstars the like of Antoine Dupont.

Brown-Bampoe said: “I like to pick little bits, maybe one thing from every winger that I play against.

“For example, [Damian] Penaud’s ability to work off ball to get on ball is outstanding. That's definitely one thing that I've looked at and tried to add to my game. But I think how I approached year one was to just be a sponge.

“To be honest, that hasn't really changed that much in year two. I still think that I've got a long way to go development wise.”

The opportunity to develop and adds to his game begins this weekend for Brown-Bampoe. Chiefs travel to Northampton for the domestic league’s first round match-up against Saints.

There has been a mindset change at Sandy Park throughout pre-season as new faces have come into the playing and coaching group, enabling a re-focus on what being a Chiefs truly means.

Brown-Bampoe said: “I think it is about staying in a fight. I think last season we learned some tough lessons about the standards that we set as a club in regard to making games close and pushing teams to the edge.

“Coming into this season, I think we've really been physically, but more importantly, mentally pushed to some pretty extreme extents. And I think something that everyone can expect from us is that there's going to be constant fight and a never give up attitude.”

Northampton Saints are the test on the road this weekend, but next Saturday will see Brown-Bampoe and his Chiefs teammates open the season at home. Newcastle Red Bulls arrive at Sandy Park on Saturday, 4 October with tickets available here.