HEREFORD-born rugby union star Nick Scott is looking to come out with all guns blazing this season for what he has described as the most important year in his fledgling Bath career.

The 21-year-old centre, who is a former Whitecross School pupil, landed a one-year professional contract with the club back in April after a making six first team appearances in all last season.

But far from resting on his laurels the versatile back, who has just completed a two-year Sports performance degree at Bath University, knows the importance of pushing on this year, particularly early on in the season when some big names could be away on international duty.

Scott, who will get an early chance to impress when the J.P. Morgan Asset Management Premiership Rugby 7s Series kicks off in Bath on Friday, said: “This is a really big year for me and I want to grab any chance I get with both hands.

“I’ve got a one-year contract so this is a big transition year for me to hopefully make the step up and start gaining some regular appearances in the Premiership.

“If I am to accomplish my dream of a long term contract here then I need to find my consistency, not just the odd good performance when I’m called on but producing it on a regular basis.

“The World Cup should present a good chance for me to show what I can do as we are going to have a few players like Matt Banahan away on international duty.

“But if I want to get that chance then I need to start to put the work in now so that come the start of the season I’m up and in the best possible form.”

With pre-season well underway Scott’s first taste of competitive action this summer will come in the J.P. Morgan Asset Management Sevens Series at the Rec.

Bath will take on premiership rivals Exeter, London Irish and Harlequins in the event and Scott knows that now is the time to shine if he wants to cement a spot in Ian McGeechan’s plans.

“I'm really looking forward to it, this tournament is always a great opportunity for players to lay down an early marker in pre-season,” he added.

“We have been going pretty hard for a couple of weeks now but sevens is always a good way to top up the fitness.

“I played in this competition last year and we didn’t do too well as a team so we are looking to bounce back in style this time around.

“The standard is always really high it’s a mix of academy, fringe and first team players so you have to be on your game from the start, it’s extremely physical and everyone is up for the challenge.”

Tickets for every round of the J.P. Morgan Asset Management Premiership Rugby 7s Series are available through Ticketmaster www.ticketmaster.co.uk or by calling 0844 847 2492