One year after he made the decision to leave Bath for Gloucester, Olly Barkley will finally line up in a cherry and white shirt against his former team-mates and closest friends this weekend.

It was February 22, 2008 when the centre announced he would quit Bath after eight years to join their fiercest rivals on a two-year contract.

But even now, as he prepares to play in his first Gloucester-Bath fixture since his move, the 27-year-old does not entirely convince when asked if he made the right decision.

A season initially hindered by injury has seen Barkley make 20 starts for the side who currently top the Guinness Premiership, yet his own performances have only threatened to scale the levels they reached in blue, black and white last term.

So, did he make the right decision to swap the Recreation Ground for Kingsholm one year ago?

"At the time I made the right decision for me," said Barkley.

"I was always going to miss Bath, and if I stay here for the rest of my career then I will always miss it, because it meant so much to me.

"I went from being a schoolboy to, hopefully, a man there. I had my first property in Bath – and all these things that mean a lot to you in life occurred in Bath and with the people who are at Bath now.

"At the time I made the right decision, but I will never stop missing Bath. There's a part of me that will always be there and I make no excuses for that because I was there for eight years."

Not only does Barkley still live in Bath, but on a recent week off he headed to Mexico with a quartet of current Bath players.

But he insists his commitment is to Gloucester, whose hazardous run of fixtures – they have faced fellow title-chasers London Irish, Sale and Harlequins in their last three matches – continues against Bath at Kingsholm on Saturday.

"This match carries more weight, because I still live in Bath and they are still very close mates," he said. "Eight years is a long time and you develop a strong bond with people and places over that time. To be on the other side of it is going to be quite strange, but it's something I'm looking forward to.

"I still live with Shaun Berne and I see the boys every week, so it will be a strange one.

"I had a week off the other week and went to Mexico with Justin Harrison, Pieter Dixon, Michael Lipman and Shaun Berne, so there's still a strong part of me that's there, but I'm committed to playing for Gloucester."

But how does he feel about playing against his closest friends, those who stuck by him when he faced assault charges in the summer of 2007, for the first time?

"When I signed for Gloucester, I knew it would have to be done at some point, so it's not something I haven't imagined," he said.

"I've run through it a few times in my head and thought about how I would react. But it's one of those things you don't really know until you get out there."

One thing Barkley can guarantee, however, is how difficult an opponent his former club will be for his current side.

Bath may have stuttered to a 20-20 draw against London Irish at the weekend after leading 17-0, but Barkley knows they can be as dangerous as any side in the Premiership when they hit their stride.

"The last two years they've developed a style that really works for them," he said.

"To have their pace with accuracy is dangerous. If you allow them momentum, you can have a very long day at the office. But if you stop the momentum, you can cause them problems.

"There's no doubt, though, that they are a very good side and they are playing some of the best rugby in the Premiership at the moment. They are so accurate in doing what they do that it's difficult to play against them.

"You know what the All Blacks are going to do – but try stopping them. That's something else entirely."