Match preview

31 August 2012, 12:00pm

Trio to make competitive debuts

Paul James, Dominic Day and Kyle Eastmond will all make their first competitive starts for Bath Rugby tomorrow as the team take on Worcester Warriors in the opening round of the 2012/13 Aviva Premiership season.

James and Day both joined the Club over the summer, and, having impressed during pre-season, will start at loosehead prop and in the second row respectively.

James is joined in the front row by Lee Mears and David Wilson, with Day joining forces with captain Stuart Hooper in the engine room. Francois Louw, recently selected to join the Springboks squad for the Rugby Championship, Carl Fearns and Ben Skirving complete the pack.

Olly Barkley pulls on the fly-half shirt in a competitive fixture for the first time since November 2010, renewing his half-back partnership with Michael Claassens.

Eastmond arrived at the Club last year, but injuries limited his time in the Bath jersey to just three appearances from the bench. He will start on the left wing, with Tom Biggs on the opposite side. Matt Banahan and Dan Hipkiss combine in the centres, with Nick Abendanon named at fullback.

Speaking ahead of the clash, Head Coach Gary Gold said: "We've had a good pre-season, and are pleased with the results, but we all know the real hard work is just beginning and that areas of our game still need improving.

"Worcester are a difficult side to prepare for. They have a good strong pack, a staunch defence and they are a team that work very hard for one another, which is always difficult to counter."

Bath Rugby team to face Worcester Warriors

15. Nick Abendanon

14. Tom Biggs

13. Dan Hipkiss

12. Matt Banahan

11. Kyle Eastmond

10. Olly Barkley

9. Michael Claassens

1. Paul James

2. Lee Mears

3. David Wilson

4. Stuart Hooper ( c )

5. Dominic Day

6. Carl Fearns

7. Francois Louw

8. Ben Skirving

Replacements

16. Ross Batty

17. Nathan Catt

18. Kane Palma-Newport

19. Dave Attwood

20. Will Skuse

21. Mark McMillan

22. Ollie Devoto

23. Jack Cuthbert