James Scaysbrook had an impressive group of mentors when it came to appreciating the significance of the Bath-Bristol derby – and their words still resonate for the flanker to this day, writes Steve Cotton.

It is almost eight years since Scaysbrook made his derby debut, and he was primed at the time by men such as John Mallett, Matt Perry and Mike Catt on why the fixture meant so much.

Scaysbrook will cast his mind back to those early days when he steps on to the Recreation Ground on Saturday, adding extra spice to an occasion which offers the 27-year-old another opportunity to stake a regular claim for the Bath No 7 shirt.

With team captain Michael Lipman still missing after suffering concussion against Toulouse six weeks ago, Scaysbrook – who impressed in last weekend's defeat at Gloucester – is certainly gathering momentum.

And he recognises just how important Saturday's Guinness Premiership clash with bottom-of-the-table Bristol is to those who will be in attendance.

"I've been here a while now and I know how important the Bath-Bristol game is to the supporters – and it's the same for the players," said Scaysbrook.

"It's still a big thing to play against Bristol and Gloucester, the two local teams, and doing it back-to-back makes it an intense couple of weeks. We all know the importance of this fixture and what it means to people in the city.

"It's one of the games I enjoy most every year and I always have done over the years. When I first started here, the old heads drilled that into me; the senior players always made sure the younger boys knew exactly what it meant to play against Bristol.

"People like John Mallett, Mike Catt and Matt Perry would always drill home the importance of the Bath-Bristol games and that has definitely stuck with me over the years."

Of Scaysbrook's 164 appearances for Bath, 81 have come from the bench – and the skilful openside has at times been viewed as little more than a fill-in man for when Lipman is unavailable.

But in the skipper's continuing absence, Scaysbrook has come to the fore, producing some fine displays to underline his importance to the Bath cause.

"When you're not playing and you're not in the squad regularly and then you come in, you can almost try a bit too hard," said Scaysbrook.

"It's difficult to keep the rhythm in your game when you're in and out of the side, but I've been lucky enough the last few weeks to get a few games and I'm trying to make the most of all these opportunities which are coming my way."

Scaysbrook will be in direct competition with his former flat-mate, the Bristol captain Joe El Abd, this afternoon – and recognises Bath need to improve on their performances of the last two weekends if they are to justify the bookmakers' confidence in them.

Bath threw away a 17-0 half-time lead to draw 20-20 with London Irish a fortnight ago, before going down 36-27 at Kingsholm – but they are still available at odds of only 1-25 to triumph today.

"We were bitterly disappointed to come away without any points last weekend, and the week before we were disappointed to only get a draw," said Scaysbrook.

"Hopefully, this weekend we'll be able to go one better and finish off the performances.

"We've played some good stuff in patches; it's just about stringing together that 80-minute performance now."