Kris Taft has been playing a good level of rugby in and around Gloucestershire for well over a decade.

He initially played for Hartpury College as a 16-year-old student but has also played for the University of Gloucestershire, Drybrook and Old Patesians.

He was part of two promotion-winning campaigns during his three years at Drybrook, who play in Regional 1 South West, and has been one of the mainstays at the Pats for the past five years or so.

So much so that the 28-year-old is in his third season as captain of the Pats, a role he takes very seriously.

“It’s such an honour to be captain of the club,” he said. “The history of the Pats is quite extensive, they’ve got a massive history. It’s great to see my name on the captain’s board, there are some really big names on there from years gone by.”

There certainly are with Taft following in the footsteps of some top players of yesteryear such as Paul Morris, Dave Kingscott, Ralph Tucker and Jon Steckbeck to name just a few.

That quartet all played their part in the Pats’ glory days in the 90s and the noughties, and Taft is one of the main driving forces as the club look to re-live that great period.

They are currently rebuilding after being demoted three levels at the start of the campaign, but they are going well in Counties 3 Gloucestershire North and Taft sees plenty of reason for optimism.

“Yes, we do want to get promoted, we want to get the club back up to where we were,” he said. “We didn’t want to drop three divisions but we’re doing quite well at the moment, I think we’re turning it around.

“We’re rebuilding, I think dropping down has actually been quite beneficial for us. We want to make the Pats a place where people want to come and play. We want them to engage and help us develop the right vibe.”

That should, in turn, encourage people to come and play for the club, of course.

“We want the Pats to be the focus of the community,” Taft continued. “We want to play good rugby and get the club back on the rugby map.”

Stroud, Gloucester Old Boys and Widden Old Boys are also competing in the 11-strong Counties 3 Gloucestershire North so winning the title will not be easy, but Taft is fully behind chairman Matt Cape, head coach Chris Downes and coach Ben Smith as they look to grow the club.

Taft is the leader on the pitch, of course, so what sort of captain is he?

“I’m a bit of a weird mixture,” he said. “Off the pitch I’m not necessarily the loudest but on the pitch I’m quite vocal.

“I leave everything out there. My attitude is that we’ve got a job to do, let’s get it done. You can’t have a captain who doesn’t put himself about.”

Taft, originally from Tamworth, is an inside centre – “I can slot in at 10 when needed,” he said – but wrist and hamstring injuries have prevented him from playing as much as he would like this season.

He’s hoping to play more games in the second half of the campaign and a fit and firing Taft will certainly be a welcome sight for Downes and the club’s supporters.

So what sort of player is he?

“I love distributing,” he said, “I like to see myself as a playmaker,” adding with a laugh, “as you get older you need that side to your game!”

There’s plenty more to his game as well.

“I’m not afraid to carry the ball, I like to use my size to my advantage,” he said.

Taft, who is dad to three-month-old Logan, is clearly a big personality on and off the pitch. He’s already got his name on the captain’s board, now he wants to steer the club back to where he feels they belong.

Old Pats are scheduled to host Stroud in a top-of-the-table league clash on Saturday.