According to the English rugby union recruit, it is a regular occurrence – even at away games, such as Sunday's match in the north of London.

"The Rabbits are everywhere," Burgess said. "Every week at every game, there will be someone come up with a Souths jersey wanting me to sign it for them. I think what happened last year was pretty special and there is some genuine support over here in England for the Bunnies now, especially with obviously myself and my brothers playing there.

"I have got a massive soft spot for the club, so it is good to see how big they are internationally and it is good to see that the game has got such a big reach now. Here we are down in London, where there is not a lot of league, and people are wanting me to sign Souths jerseys, so that is pretty cool."

Of course, Burgess wants to be known as more than the English forward whose bravery has become part of the already rich history of the NRL's oldest and most successful club after ignoring a fractured eye socket sustained in the opening tackle of the grand final to inspire the Rabbitohs to their first premiership in 43 years.

While most believe the odds are against him adapting to the new code in time to have an impact at this year's Rugby World Cup, Burgess took another step towards achieving his ambition with an impressive performance against the Aviva Premiership's third-placed team, in which he had a role in two of Bath's three tries, made a number of line breaks and off-loaded regularly.

Those who Fairfax Media spoke to at the game, including seasoned rugby union observers, veteran officials, Bath coach Mike Ford and injured England five-eighth Owen Farrell, all believe Burgess is making rapid progress.

"He is picking it up very quickly," Farrell said. "We have all seen the type of player he is in league, he has an impact on the game in everything he does – whether it be in attack or defence – and to be able to do the same thing in rugby union so quickly is brilliant."

The biggest question is which position he should play, with Burgess' natural instincts after a lifetime of playing in the forwards in league resulting in the centre pushing into the middle to make a tackle or help out at the ruck only to get caught out of position when Saracens suddenly swung the ball wide.

Burgess' willingness to sail close to the wind was also noted by at least one official at the game following a big hit on the Saracens' former England five-eighth Charlie Hodgson after he kicked in front of his posts, while a decoy run that led to a Bath try for winger Ollie Woodburn would have almost certainly been ruled as obstruction in the NRL.

"It has been nine or 10 games now but really I have only started four or five of those," Burgess said. "It is a good period now, I am getting to play plenty of minutes and hopefully develop some more game awareness. It is going to be a gradual thing but it has been enjoyable.

"I think I will be a better player long term because I am learning so much more from practising different skills and doing it under pressure. It has been good for my development."

Ford said that at training, Burgess worked closely with another two league converts in George Ford and Kyle Eastmond and his combination with the latter helped created two late tries that enabled Bath to fight back from 31-10 down in the 70th minute to get within a converted try four minutes from full-time.

"I played with Kyle from under-14s through to when I was 18 or 19 in the national juniors and we played together in a Four Nations tournament so I have got a good understanding with him," Burgess said. "He played at No.10 towards the back end of the game and played straight, similar to league so that is good for me.

"Having Kyle and George in the team has helped me because obviously we who have played league see the game differently to the union boys, so it is good being able to bounce ideas and things off them. They are good boys to work with and have sort of been in my shoes as well, which helps."

Another who has experienced what he is going through is Sonny Bill Williams and Burgess said he drew inspiration from the way the All Blacks centre had overcome an initial urge to return to the NRL after leaving the Bulldogs to become a dual code superstar.

"Sonny is such a strong character. He stuck it out, he has got a great work ethic and that is why he made a success of it, and hopefully I can do the same thing," Burgess said.

"He is a wonderful athlete and if I get the chance to have a run against him at some stage it would be great. I will give it my all because we have always had [a] great battle over years so we have got the ultimate respect for each other."

The first chance for the pair to continue their two-year rivalry in the NRL and at the 2013 Rugby League World Cup will most likely be in a semi-final or final of the end-of-season tournament in the UK.

Despite what he achieved with South Sydney last season, Burgess hopes to surpass that as a career highlight and helping England to World Cup glory in front of a home crowd at Twickenham would be an obvious way to do so.

"Why not," Burgess said when asked if he could ever top the feeling he had after last year's grand final. "I don't think it will ever be the circumstances where I bust my face in the first minute but I will always be chasing success and I have got a few more years left in my legs yet so I am sure there will be other things that I do throughout time; 2014 was an unbelievable year – probably the most exciting and enjoyable year of my career so far – and I will never forget it but it has been and gone now.

"There were so many things I got so much joy out of, and it always brings a smile to my face and gives me goosebumps, but I have got a new job now and I want to attack that the best I can."

In the meantime, he will continue to support the Rabbitohs and plans to meet up with his former teammates, including brothers George and Thomas, as they prepare for next Sunday night's World Club Series final against Super League champions St Helens at a sold-old Langtree Park.

"You have got to move on but I will go and enjoy it socially, and just watch it as a fan and a proud older brother, I guess," he said. "Hopefully they can get the win."