Meet the players – Jason Pope

Jason Pope joined Bath City from Hereford F.C this season. The 25-year-old versatile midfielder, previously of Weston-super-Mare, has already made a good impression in the early stages of this campaign. We caught up with Jason recently and spoke about his career, Covid and City…

Jason, you arrived at City in the summer from Hereford but can you give us a brief rundown of your career to date?
“I was at Exeter from the age of eight. I had two years as a pro with their first team and also had a loan spell at Weston-super-Mare, for whom I eventually signed for. After a few seasons at Weston, I signed for Hereford where I played my football last campaign before joining Bath.”

Having appeared for Hereford last season, how different is the National South compared with the North division?
“I don’t think the standard of the players is very different at all. Just the north has a couple more of the ‘bigger’ clubs such as Hereford and York.”

You can play in several positions; where do you see your favoured position?
“Personally I enjoy playing in front of the back four in a holding midfield role or in a back three.”

What have been your impressions of Bath City so far?
“I think Bath is probably the most professional part time set up that I’ve been a part of. The standard of training and having the amount of back room staff we have is fantastic.”

With the Covid situation impacting the team recently, how were things for you?
“I was one of the players that tested positive so I had a 10-day isolation at my partner’s parents’ house, which was horrible. I was stuck in the bedroom for 10 days, having all my meals left outside the door for me.”

What targets have you set yourself for this season or is it very much team targets that are important?
“Personally I always want to play as many games in a season as possible and perform consistently. In terms of the team, I came here looking at what a fantastic season Bath had last season and I want to be a player that can help the club go that bit further and get promoted.”

Finally, what message would you give the supporters who’re not able to watch live, but may have been supporting from the live stream?
“I’d like to say thank you to all the supporters that have taken the time to support us through the live streaming service and hope that they will be allowed to return to Twerton Park in the near future to support the lads.”