Bristol call on wisdom of Solomons to help them beat the drop

Edinburgh boss Alan Solomons has joined Bristol as coaching consultant with immediate effect to help the Premiership strugglers stave off relegation.

The South African joins Mark Tainton’s coaching set-up for the remainder of the campaign.

Tainton, who has worked as interim boss since Andy Robinson’s departure in November, will pass the reins to current Connacht boss Pat Lam in the summer and assume the role of chief operations officer, overseeing the club’s recruitment policy.

Tainton said: “Alan is a hugely experienced operator who understands the game and has worked at the highest level for years.”

The 66-year-old Solomons, who led Edinburgh to their first ever European Cup final in 2015, said: “I’m delighted to be able to link up with Bristol Rugby for the next three months and assist Mark and the management group”

Bristol confirmed that Conor McPhillips will join the club as one of Lam’s assistants in the summer.

The 36-year-old backs and attack specialist will join Lam in the move from Connacht.

Tainton said: “It is important for Pat to build a coaching team around him of people that he not only trusts, but that he believes can help to build a strong culture and take Bristol Rugby forward.”

Chief executive Steve Gorvett will also step down at the end of the current campaign.

Gorvett has been with Bristol for 12 seasons, arriving in 2005 as finance director before taking on the chief executive role in 2008.

Gorvett said: “I took the decision to step down at the end of the season after 12 enjoyable years at Bristol.

“At the end of the season, we aim to still be in the Premiership with a world-class head coach already committed, a stadium that we are proud to call home and a state-of-the-art training ground on the way.”