By JONATHAN B. GEDDES
AN English back who won a premiership playing alongside Waratah Charlie Gamble with the Petersham subbies team has made a stunning comeback to emerge as a key man for Eastern Suburbs in Saturday’s Shute grand final against Warringah at Leichhardt Oval.

But starting flyhalf Chris Bell was keeping a big secret from coach Ben Batger after his late recall to the top side for last Saturday’s preliminary final against Sydney University.

He struggled through all of last week with a debilitating stomach virus, so severe he ended up shedding five kilograms.

But there was no way Bell was going to miss his opportunity. Not only did he take the field in the win over the Students for his first game in six weeks, but he somehow got through the full 80 minutes.

“I was pretty crook last week, but I thought I would keep shtum and just get through it,” Bell told Rugby News. “I trained and just did the best I could, and it was

worth it, I guess.
“I knew when you get to Saturday, you don’t even think about it as soon as you get on the pitch. Your mind is at a million and one other places. It was afterwards that

I was pretty drained.”

All that was unbeknownst to East’s coach Ben Batger at the time.

“I said to someone on Saturday ‘It looks like Belly has lost weight’, and he only told me about that on Tuesday night,” Batger revealed. “He’s a tough bugger, and it just shows his mental fortitude is obviously pretty strong.”

THE BELL TOLLS

THE grand final will only be Bell’s seventh game this season after a shocking run of injuries. First, it was a hamstring in the pre-season, followed by a serious AC injury and, most recently, a back problem.

“It’s been very frustrating to be honest, there were times when I was definitely a bit down and bleak,” Bell admitted. “At one point with the back, I thought I was gone for the year.

“But the boys were in a good position, so I thought just rehab hard – you never know, do you? That was my mindset: try as hard as I could to get right, and last week was the day.”

Bell had expected to have a role off the bench, maybe, until Batger rang last week and asked if he was ready to go when Kemu Valetini got called up to play for Fiji.

After losing both Jack Bowen and Valetini, coach Batger showed his confidence in Bell by bringing him back in the No.10 jumper for the climax of the season.

“He’s a 10 out of 10 communicator and has great organisational skills,” Batger said. “He’s a very fit guy, so fitness wasn’t going to be a problem. But it’s still a tough ask throwing him into a semi-final after six weeks out with a back injury.”

Saturday’s game will also be Bell’s fourth Shute Shield grand final, previously playing in premiership deciders with Eastwood in 2020 and Easts in 2024 and 2025 – all under coach Batger.

And he will go into the Rats’ showdown feeling 110 per cent better than he did last week.

A BIG RUGBY GAMBLE

WHEN he arrived in Sydney from England in 2019, Bell won a premiership playing with Petersham alongside future Waratahs backrow star Charlie Gamble.

“It was a good, fun year to be honest, I loved every minute,” Bell said. “I wasn’t supposed to be playing rugby when I first came out here, it was just a bit of fun, a bit of travelling as it is for every Pom.”

It wasn’t long before his performances wider attracted attention.

“I heard there was a good flyhalf playing in subbies called Chris Bell,” Batger said. “We met at Balmoral Beach and had a good chat, and he ended up coming to Eastwood in 2020 (where Batger was then coaching).”

That was the start of the successful seven-year association between player and coach.

Bell sees the key for Easts in the grand final rematch against Warringah as playing on the front foot and playing with a good tempo.

“We have to go out and back ourselves,” he said. “You can’t go into your shells in a GF, you have to go hard.”