The devastating XV Bristol Bears might field next season
Bristol Bears’ upwards trajectory over the past two years looks set to continue going forward, as they have already been the busiest team in the Gallagher Premiership ahead of next season. Their signings are not simply about adding depth to the squad, they are about adding world-class talent for head coach Pat Lam to work with.
A ninth place finish in the league last season has been improved upon this campaign, with the Bears sitting in third place ahead of the suspension due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Bristol can still hope for a successful end to the season if any rugby is to be played, but they are equipping themselves ahead of next September.
So this is what their starting XV could look like next season:
1 Yann Thomas
Lam has options next season in the front row, and Yann Thomas and Jake Woolmore are two who will battle it out at loosehead.
2 Harry Thacker
The former Leicester Tigers hooker Harry Thacker has been one of Bristol’s most consistent performers since arriving at Ashton Gate in 2018. Highly effective in the loose, the 26-year-old will be the custodian of the No.2 shirt next season as he strives for international honours.
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3 Kyle Sinckler
One of the landmark signings ahead of next season, Kyle Sinckler will arrive in the West Country from Harlequins with the reputation of being one of the very best tightheads in the game currently. The England, and British and Irish Lions prop will not only bring brute force to a promising front row, but has a distributing game that very few can rival in his position.
4 Dave Attwood
The former Gloucester, Bath and Toulon lock Dave Attwood always provides plenty of grit and firepower in the tight, and the 24-cap England international’s venom will be fundamental with so many exciting ball carriers in the squad.
5 Chris Vui
The big Samoan Chris Vui will be pivotal alongside Attwood in the engine room for Bristol next campaign. Able to play in the back row, Lam will hope his work around the field will help build some supremacy up front.
6 Steven Luatua
The former All Blacks loose forward Stephen Luatua is at the heart of everything good the Bears do under Lam. The captain seldom misses a game and very rarely has a bad performance, and will be part of a lethal ball-carrying back row next season.
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7 Ben Earl
Arriving on a season-long loan from the relegated Saracens next term, the recently capped international Ben Earl is one of England’s emerging talents. With scintillating pace and explosive power, he has been one of Saracens’ most potent runners over the past year, and has filled the void left by Billy Vunipola at No.8.
8 Nathan Hughes
The revitalised Nathan Hughes has been enjoying a wonderful season at Ashton Gate, and his move from Wasps last summer has paid off. Looking fitter and quicker than ever, still with no drop in power, the 20-cap England international will be looking to reclaim a place in Eddie Jones’ squad next season.
9 Harry Randall
The 22-year-old Harry Randall is one that is on the radar of Jones with England and is only improving in his second season with the Bears. The tempo the former England under-20 international plays with will be crucial next season in unleashing the outside backs.
10 Callum Sheedy
The Bears’ swashbuckling flyhalf Callum Sheedy has made the shirt his own this season, and has pulled the strings expertly. At only 24 years of age, his halfback partnership with Randall will continue to grow next season and onwards.
Able to play for either England, Wales or Ireland, next season may be the one in which Sheedy makes his Test bow.
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11 Charles Piutau
The impact of signing Semi Radradra would have been diminished slightly had Charles Piutau not signed a new two-year deal in December. Now Bristol will probably have the two most dangerous outside backs in the league.
Capable of playing across the back three, the most important thing for Bristol is that they get the ball in Piutau’s or Radradra’s hands as much as possible.
12 Sam Bedlow
Having emerged at the back end of last season, 24-year-old Sam Bedlow has kicked on this season and will be part of this promising Bristol midfield over the coming years.
13 Semi Radradra
Arguably the most devastating ball carrier on the planet in the outside channels, Radradra is the flagship signing in the Premiership ahead of next season, as he arrives from Bordeaux-Begles.
The Fijian can cover outside centre or the wings but will be the player to watch in 2020/21 and could be the signing that makes the Bears a serious force across Europe.
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Should Radradra be deployed on the wing next season, Piers O’Conor has proven this year to be an excellent option in the No.13 shirt as well.
14 Luke Morahan
With Alapati Leiua and Henry Purdy in the ranks, Lam has plenty of options with his wingers but the three-cap Wallaby Luke Morahan deserves to keep hold of his starting berth ahead of next season. However, players will need to remain at the top of their game to remain in the starting XV.
15 Max Malins
Another member of the cohort of Saracens players moving on loan for a season, Max Malins could provide some creativity and guile from fullback to match the undoubted class of this back line.
An operator in a No.15 shirt or at flyhalf, an extra ball player could prove to be invaluable for the Bears with so many running options in the forwards and backs.
Watch: Big Jim Hamilton’s hilarious response to riddle
Comments on RugbyPass
excellent idea ! rugby needs this 💪
9 Go to comments9 Brumbies! What a joke! The best performing team in Oz! Ditch Skelton for Swain or Neville. Ryan Lonergan ahead of McDermott any day! Best selection bolter is Toole … amazing player
12 Go to commentsI like this, but ultimately rugby already has enough trophies. Trying to make more games “consequential" might prove to be a fools errand, although this is a less bad idea than some others. Minor quibble with the title of the article; it isn’t very meaningful to say the boks are the unofficial world champions when it would be functionally impossible for the Raeburn trophy not to be held by the world champions. There’s a period of a few months every 4 years when there is no “unofficial” world champion, and the Raeburn trophy is held by the actual world champions.
9 Go to commentsIts a great idea but one that I dont think will have a lot of traction. It will depend on the prestige that they each hold but if you can do that it would be great. When Japan beat the Boks (my team) I was absolutely devestated but I wont deny the great game they played that day. We were outclassed and it was one of the best games of rugby I have seen. Using an idea like this you might just give the the underdog teams more of an opportunity to beat the big teams and I can absolutely see it being a brilliant display of rugby. They beat us because they planned for that game. It was a great moment for Japan. This way we can remove the 4 year wait and give teams something to aim for outside of World Cup years.
9 Go to commentsHi, Dave here. Happy to answer questions 🥰
9 Go to commentsDon’t think that headline is accurate. It’s great to see Aus doing better but I’m not sure they’ve shown much threat to the top of the table. They shouldn’t be inflating wins against the lousy Highlanders and Crusaders either.
3 Go to commentsSuch a shame Roigard and Aumua picked up long term injuries, probably the two form players in the comp. Also, pretty sure Clarke Dermody isn’t their coach. Got it half right though.
3 Go to commentsOh the Aussie media, they never learn. At least Andrew Kellaway is like “Woah, yeah it’s great, but settle down there guys” having endured years of the Aussie media, fans, and often their players getting ahead of themselves only to fall flat on their faces. Have the “We'll win the Bledisloe for sure this year!” headlines started yet? It’s simple to see what’s going on. The Aussie teams are settled, they didn't lose any of their major players overseas. The Crusaders and Chiefs lost key experienced All Blacks, and Razor in the Crusaders case, and clearly neither are anywhere near as strong as last year (The Canes and Blues would probably be 3rd & 4th if they were). The Highlanders are annually average, even more so post-Aaron Smith and a big squad clean out. The two teams at the top? The two nz sides with largely the same settled roster as last year, except Ardie Savea for the Canes. They’ve both got far better coaches now too. If the Aussies are going to win the title, this is the year the kiwi sides will be weakest, so they better take their chance.
3 Go to commentsThe World Cup has to be the gold standard, line in the sand. 113 teams compete for what is the opportunity to make the pool stages, and then the knockout games for the trophy. The concept is sound. This must have been the rationale when the World Cup was created, surely? But I’m all for Looking forward and finding new ways for the SH to dominate the NH into the future. The autumn series needs a change up. Let’s start by having the NH teams come south every odd year for the Autumn/Spring series games?
9 Go to commentsWhat’ll happen when the AI models of the future go back in time and try to destroy the AI models of the past standing in their way of certain victory?
41 Go to commentsThanks, Nick. We (Seanny Maloney, Brett and I) just discussed Charlie as a potential Wallaby No 8, and wondered if he has truly realised how big he is in contact (and whether he can add 5 kg w/o slowing down). Your scouting report confirms our suspicions he has the materiel. No one knows if he has the mentality (as Johann van Graan said this week about CJ, Duane and Alfie B) to carry 10-15 times a game.
57 Go to commentsHe would be a great player for the Stormers, Dobbo should approach the guy.
3 Go to commentsGood article. A few years back when he was playing for the Cheetahs, he was a quiet standout for exactly the seasons stated here. I occasionally get to see his games in the UK, and he has become a more complete player and in many ways like an Irish player. His work ethic is so suitable to the Leinster game. I wonder if Rassie would have him listed somewhere.
3 Go to commentsResults probably skewed by the fact that a few clubs have foreign fly halves in their 30s, but most teams have young English scrum halves. Results also likely to be skewed by the fact that many teams rely on centres and fullbacks to provide depth at 10, whereas they will need to stock a large number of specialist backup 9s.
1 Go to commentsI really get the sense that when all is said and done, the path of least resistance will end up being a merger of Wasps & Worcester that essentially kills the Worcester Warriors brand and sees Wasps permanently playing at Sixways. I’m not saying that’s what should happen or what I want to happen. I just think it’s the easiest rout to take and therefore, will be what happens. Wasps will definitely return to play first, and I suppose it all depends on if they can find support at Sixways. If people turn up and support Wasps in that community, at that ground, I bet they drop the Sevenoaks plan and just remain at Sixways. Under the radar but not totally unrelated, it looks as though London Irish are going to be brought back from the dead by a German consortium and look set to return, likely to the remade Championship. It’s set to have 12 clubs next season with 14 in 2025/26, what do you want to bet those extra 2 are Wasps and London Irish?
3 Go to commentsThe shoulder is a “joint” with multiple bones. You don’t “fracture” a shoulder, you fracture any one or more of the bones that make up a shoulder.
2 Go to commentsOh dear, bones too suspect to continue?
2 Go to commentsBold headline considering the Canes and Blues are 1 and 2 and the Brumbies were soundly beaten by the Chiefs and Blues. Biggest surprise is Rebels 4 Crusaders 12 - no one saw that coming. If Aus are improving that’s great 👍
3 Go to commentsAnna, You are right, we need to have patience whilst the others catch up to England and France. Also it is the PWR that has been the game changer for England. the RFU put money into that initially at the expense of the Red Roses. I was sceptical at first but it has paid off in spades.
1 Go to commentsI think Matt Proctor became a 1 test AB in the same fixture. Cameron is quality and has been great this season, can’t believe’s he only 27. Realistically how would he not be selected for ABs squad this year. Only Dmac is ahead of him as a specialist 10. With Jordan out, it will come down to where and when Beauden Barrett slots back in, and where they want to play Ruben Love. Cameron seems an absolute lock in for the wider squad though. Added benefit of TJ-Cameron-Jordie combination at 9, 10, 11 too.
1 Go to comments