Bristol linked with a move for out-of-favour Sale wing Denny
BRISTOL Bears are reported to have spoken to former England international wing Denny Solomona about a potential switch from Sale Sharks to Ashton Gate next season.
The Rugby Paper report the fivecap England wing has been given permission by Sale to speak to other clubs, despite being in contract beyond this campaign having signed a four-year contract extension in 2018, having joined the Sharks from rugby league side Castleford in 2016
Still just 27, Solomona finds himself out of favour at Sale, having only made six appearances for the club this season and none since the arrival of new director of rugby Alex Sanderson. At his best the Auckland-born speedster is a significant threat, having scored 47 tries in 92 appearances for the club in all competitions.
Solomona’s England international career comes from two summer tours, Argentina in 2017 and South Africa in 2018, and he scored a stunning winning try against the Pumas on his debut. However, that same summer he was sent home from an England training camp in disgrace after sneaking out drinking after curfew with now Sale team-mate Manu Tuilagi.
Whether Lam needs an additional wing next season is uncertain with the likes of Luke Morahan, Siva Naulagu, Alapati Leiua, Henry Purdy, Niyi Adeolokun. and Ioan Lloyd all understood to be under contract into next season.
However, the Bears are losing Max Malins, who played his second game on the wing for the club last night against Gloucester, but is normally a full-back, with the England international set to return to Saracens, having joined Bristol on a one-year loan deal in the summer along with flanker Ben Earl.
Malins will certainly leave a hole in the squad, having firmly established himself as a star at Bristol’s as they lifted the European Challenge Cup in October and has helped them climb to the top of the Gallagher Premiership in 2020-21.
But Solomona is very much a right wing, having played all his games in the Premiership in the 14 jersey. How Solomona, who, like Bears director of rugby Pat Lam, has Samoan heritage, does fit the bill as a signing is he is potentially an undervalued commodity.
The wing has struggled in the past with alcohol and drugs, but has now got himself on the straight and narrow having worked with the likes of Saviour World, the men’s lifestyle guide and support group which the likes of Bears and England star Kyle Sinckler credit with helping him through his toughest moments.
The Bears’ one additional signing so far is Malins’ former Saracens team-mate Tom Whiteley, who will arrive to provide additional cover at scrum-half, with Bristol having been caught short in that area this season following injuries to Chris Cook and Harry Randall.