Lam promises to give youth their chance

FRUSTRATED Bristol supremo Pat Lam says he is sick of his club being used as a bargaining tool as he prepares to unveil his latest raft of signings.

Wasps duo Danny Cipriani and James Haskell are the latest out of contract stars to be linked with Ashton Gate, while Leicester scrum-half Ben Youngs and Glasgow lock Jonny Gray were being touted recently prior to re-signing for their clubs.

Lam said: “I have never addressed Haskell or Cipriani and never comment about recruitment until I’m ready to announce it.

“It’s frustrating and I wish I got some of the commission for the amount of times I see someone mentioned with us who then goes and re-signs for his club. Presumably there’s a nice little bonus in it for the player and their agent.”

TRP understands Bristol will announce up to seven new signings this week – mainly forwards – adding to the ten players already acquired for next season, headlined by Charles Piutau, John Afoa and Nic Stirzaker.

With promotion from the Championship virtually assured, Lam said: “Recruitment’s ongoing but we’re a lot closer and it’s all about depth now. The biggest thing is I’ll have been involved in selecting 95 per cent of the squad.”

Lam insists home-grown players will not be ignored, with academy duo James Dun and Charlie Powell featuring in the first team this season and Will Capon and Blake Boyland earning England U18s call-ups.

Lam added: “The goal is to play Champions Cup, but we also want Bristolians in the side who go on to play for England. That’s our vision. We’ve got superb talent coming through and they will be given chances.”