Banahan in full flight against Bristol

The giant winger, 20, is part of the squad for the IRB World Sevens Series, which starts in Dubai on Friday.

Banahan hopes to build on his strong club performances for Bath and catch the eye of England's senior coaches.

"Having never played for England at any level, to go straight into the sevens senior side is quite an achievement," Banahan told BBC Radio Bristol.

"If you look at Mathew Tait, David Strettle, James Haskell and even Nick Abendanon, those boys have come through the sevens and last year went straight into the England team.

"It's a massive stepping stone. They shot up straight to the senior squad and if there is going to be a new coaching staff in charge of England they're going to have to look at new people coming up.

606: DEBATE Give your verdict on Banahan

"The Sevens and Saxons are going to be very close to the people they're selecting from so you want to perform well on the world stage."

Strettle won his first England cap 11 weeks after playing in the Dubai Sevens 12 months ago.

But Bath coach Steve Meehan hopes Banahan's desire to make that jump up the rugby ladder sooner rather than later, and England's need for a sevens try scorer, does not hinder the player's development.

The Australian has been able to slowly introduce Banahan into the Bath ranks, giving him one or two games at a time so that his performances do not tail off.

IRB SEVENS SCHEDULE Dubai 30 November & 1 December South Africa 7 & 8 December New Zealand - 1 & 2 February USA - 9 & 10 February Hong Kong - 28-30 March Australia - 5 & 6 April England - 24 & 25 May Scotland - 31 May & 1 June

But Dubai is just the first stop of eight on a hectic sevens schedule that runs in a stop-start format until the first weekend in June.

"He takes some stopping but he has a lot of development in front of him and we can afford to manage him well," said Meehan.

"The management of the England squad need to be aware, but coach Ben Ryan's a smart guy. I just hope the workload is not too difficult for him."

Banahan admits putting the club scene to one side for a few weeks will be a wrench after making a big impression in the early part of the season at the Rec - quite literally.

Standing 6'7" and weighing in at more than 16st, he is a fearsome sight in full flight, as Bristol's defenders will testify.

In his final match before heading off for sevens duty, Banahan burst from midfield off a Butch James inside pass to set up Michael Lipman for Bath's second try and capped a sweeping move and a 28-13 derby victory with the third himself late on.

That took the Jersey-born winger's tally to three tries in nine games and he is feeling at home on the wing after an ill-starred spell in the second row at London Irish.

BANAHAN FOR BATH Born: 30 December 1986 Games this season: Nine Starts: Five Tries: Three v Sale, Newcastle & Bristol Did you know? Banahan, who is the tallest player in the Bath squad, used to play hockey to a representative level

"I wasn't played last year because I know I wasn't ready, and I wasn't ready the year before that when I was at Irish. But this year I've come back and showed I'm ready and there for the taking and I've taken my opportunities," Banahan said.

"People keep on talking about me playing second row but whenever I was at school I played 15 or 14.

"The only years I played second row were for two years and I got put there because I was tall.

"As soon as Brian Ashton signed me at Bath he said I should utilise my size in the backs and I found my home again.

"Last year was a bit of a let down on my part, but this year I'm back on form and the mindset's all there.

"I'm doing well and sevens is one stepping stone to go towards the full England team."