England international Olly Barkley underlined the major sea-change that has occurred at Bath in recent months by indicating he is ready to pledge his future to the club.

It was only seven months ago that senior players Steve Borthwick and David Barnes criticised the club's recruitment policy and lack of ambition.

Last season Nick Abendanon, one of the country's brightest young prospects, turned down the offer of a new contract because he was unconvinced by the club's potential to recapture the glory days.

But Bath have since recruited South Africa's World Cup-winning fly-half Butch James and they tackle Wasps on Saturday on the back of six straight Guinness Premiership wins with the chance to move back on top of the table.

Barkley's contract expires at the end of the season and he warned those in charge that the job is not yet done - but he also dropped a major hint that Bath, rather than potential suitors elsewhere in the Premiership, is where his future lies.

The club hope to have their future at the Rec sorted in the coming months and Barkley said: "What's going on around here at the moment is having a big bearing on my thoughts about where my own future lies beyond the end of this season.

"The past four years has seen Bath play some good rugby in fits and starts, but never consistently enough to win anything and now we're playing the sort of rugby on a Saturday that I want to play.

"We're playing attractive rugby at a high tempo and I'm really enjoying it. My lungs aren't used to it, but there's a real buzz about the game for me and around the club.

"That's a huge factor for me. If you enjoy your rugby, you'll enjoy life.

"We cannot afford to rest on our laurels and must keep building the squad so that if we have injuries we've got the cover because that's the difference between teams that win trophies and teams that don't.

"I think Bath could be an interesting place to be over the next couple of years."

Bath travel to Adams Park to tackle a Wasps side going strong in the Heineken Cup but still with just two Premiership wins under their belts this season.

Wasps were held to a 23-23 draw by Bristol before Christmas while Bath were thumping relegation strugglers Leeds 41-10, with winger Matt Banahan claiming a hat-trick.

"Butch and I are getting on really well, and he's a guy I'm really enjoying playing with in a team where other guys around us, like Alex Crockett, Shaun Berne, Andrew Higgins, Joe Maddock and younger players like Matt Banahan, are also playing really well," Barkley told the Bath Chronicle.

"That is allowing [coach] Steve Meehan to rotate players in and out of the team with confidence and that is reflecting on our results and the progress we're making in the Premiership and in Europe."

Bath currently sit second in the Premiership but level on points with west country rivals Gloucester who host Bristol at Kingsholm.

Leicester will look to bounce back from defeats to Toulouse and Sale when London Irish visit Welford Road.

Scrum-half Frank Murphy said: "We haven't talked about this Saturday's fixture as a must-win game but we know how important it is to start winning games and get into that top four again, so it's a massive game for us.

"London Irish are one of these sides that can hurt you and there are lots of teams like them in the Premiership who can beat you if you are not on the top of your game."

Bottom side Worcester go in search of their first Premiership win of the season when Harlequins visit Sixways.

On Sunday, Sale travel to Leeds and the in-form Saracens host Newcastle having won their last five home games.

More news from SportingLife.com