Bristol's Pat Lam explains curious all-England Bears selection

Pat Lam has spoken of his pride at hitting the required English Qualified Player (EQP) targets for the season despite seeing his Bristol Bears squad decimated by injury.

Heading into the final match of the season against Sale Sharks at CorpAcq Stadium on Saturday, Lam had 26 players unavailable to him and has been forced to play players out of position.

Captain Fitz Harding and props Ellis Genge and George Kloska are the latest additions to the treatment room, taking the total number of English-qualified players out of action to 14.

Even so, Lam has managed to name an all-English matchday 23 for the trip north, including nine Academy players, meaning the Bears will have averaged at least 15 EQP players per matchday squad in the period of the season laid out by the Professional Game Partnership (PGP). Only league and EPCR fixtures count.

Clubs face a fine, and possibly a points deduction, if they fall foul of the 15-player threshold, and Lam would like to see injury dispensation factored into the regulations.

Fixture

Gallagher Premiership

Sale

38 - 17

Full-time

Bristol

All Stats and Data

Academy hooker Tomas Gwilliam is set to make his first Gallagher PREM start, while George Taylor lines up in the second row. Sam Worsley, Aidan Boshoff and Joe Jenkins are also included in the starting backline.

With Harding sidelined by a broken hand, Harry Thacker and Joe Batley are deployed in the back row alongside Joe Owen. Elsewhere, James Dun and Rich Lane are in line to make their final appearances for the club in the North West.

In the front row, Bears centurions Jake Woolmore and Max Lahiff start either side of Gwilliam, with Genge and Kloska ruled out.

Captain Harry Randall partners Academy fly-half Sam Worsley at half-back, while Bristolian Jack Bates and Academy centre Joe Jenkins combine in midfield. Noah Heward is selected on the wing for the trip to Salford.

Among the replacements, Academy hooker Kieran Hill is poised to make his senior debut, while fellow Academy graduate Ollie Harris could make his Gallagher PREM debut from the bench. Jimmy Halliwell and Kenzie Jenkins are the other Academy youngsters included in the matchday squad.

Director of Rugby, Pat Lam, said: “Hitting the required average of English-qualified players every season is something I am very proud of at the Bears. To be able to achieve it again in one of our most challenging seasons with so many EQP players unavailable throughout the whole season is a credit to all.

“That list has been compounded again this week with Ellis, Fitz and George joining James Williams and a long list of unavailable players.

“When you add that to the large number of long term EQP unavailability we’ve had to Harry Randall, James Williams, Joe Jenkins, Jack Bates, Gabriel Ibitoye, Noah Heward, Rich Lane Aidan Boshoff in the backs and Gabriel Oghre, Joe Batley, James Dun, Steele Barker, George Taylor, Kofi Cripps, and Paddy Pearce in the forwards throughout the entirety of the campaign, it’s had a significant impact on our EQP numbers.

“We applied for some dispensation around our massive EQP injury list and while the RFU had sympathy and understanding for our situation, the regulations don’t permit change this season but it’s something they will consider for the future.

“While it’s disappointing to lose so many experienced players, it also presents a fantastic opportunity for some of our younger guys. We’ve got five current Academy players starting and several more involved in the matchday 23, which is a real credit to the work being done throughout the pathway.

It’s another chance for these young players to show what they’re capable of on the PREM stage and continue building the future of Bristol Bears.”

Bristol Bears vs Sale Sharks: 15. Rich Lane (69 apps), 14. Noah Heward (43 apps), 13. Jack Bates (63 apps), 12. Joe Jenkins (32 apps), 11. Aidan Boshoff (15 apps), 10. Sam Worsley (36 apps), 9. Harry Randall (c) (164 apps); 1. Jake Woolmore (186 apps), 2. Tomas Gwilliam (16 apps), 3. Max Lahiff (127 apps), 4. James Dun (69 apps), 5. George Taylor (18 apps), 6. Joe Owen (64 apps), 7. Harry Thacker (158 apps), 8. Joe Batley (94 apps).

Replacements: 16. Kieran Hill (debut), 17. Sam Grahamslaw (24 apps), 18. Lovejoy Chawatama (24 apps), 19. Jimmy Halliwell (25 apps), 20. Kenzie Jenkins (8 apps), 21. Sam Wolstenholme (20 apps), 22. Max Pepper (8 apps), 23. Ollie Harris (3 apps).

Unavailable: Ellis Genge, Louie Trevett, George Kloska, Gabriel Oghre, Pedro Rubiolo, Steele Barker, Paddy Pearce, Santi Grondona, Steven Luatua, Fitz Harding, Luka Ivanishvili, Viliame Mata, Benjamin Grondona, Kofi Cripps, Kieran Marmion, AJ MacGinty, Tom Jordan, James Williams, Victor Worsnip, Benhard Janse Van Rensburg, Matias Moroni, Gabriel Ibitoye, Kalaveti Ravouvou, Josh Carrington, Evan Morris, Louis Rees-Zammit.