Jordan Venter and Mackenzie Graham will make their Bath Rugby debuts in Friday’s Premiership Rugby Cup match against Bristol Bears.
Centre Venter, who joined from Edinburgh rugby in December 21, earned minutes in the Championship with Ampthill last weekend and lines up outside Max Ojomoh.
Homegrown back row Graham is a Beechen Cliff School graduate who has been in the pathway since the age of 13. He is in a back row alongside fellow Senior Academy forward Nahum Merigan and Richard de Carpentier.
Orlando Bailey will captain the senior side for the first time from fly-half outside Joe Simpson with Gabriel Hamer-Webb, Tom Prydie and Darren Atkins completing the backline.
Academy lock Josh Dingley and Ospreys loanee Ma’afu Fia are set for their full club debuts in a front five which also includes Lewis Boyce, Tom Doughty and Will Spencer.
On the bench, lock Harry Casson is named after signing a short-term loan from Ealing Trailfinders.
Nathan Hughes and Max Green are both cup tied having played in earlier rounds of the tournament.
Bath Rugby team to play Bristol Bears
The opposition
15 Rich Lane, 14 Niyi Adeolokun, 13 Jack Bates, 12 Piers O’Conor, 11 Matthew Jones, 10 Tiff Eden, 9 Theo Strang; 1 Ashley Challenger, 2 Bryan Byrne, 3 Jake Armstrong, 4 Dave Attwood, 5 Ed Holmes, 6 John Hawkins (c), 7 Dan Thomas, 8 Mitch Eadie
Replacements
16 Will Capon, 17 Tom Sims, 18 George Kloska, 19 James Dun, 20 Macennzie Duncan, 21 Pete Carter, 22 Jac Lloyd, 23 Harry Rowson
