Derby clash opens new season at Old Patesians

national three sw

Everest Road stages a local derby game to open the season as Old Patesians, last season’s runners-up, host newly-promoted Cheltenham.

Fly-half Adam Seager retains the Old Pats captaincy, while there are debuts for new signings Matt Dean (Cheltenham North), Dave Lane (Westcombe Park) and Nathan Reilly (Brixham).

Old Patesians (home v Cheltenham, 3pm): M Dean; C Howell, B Pascal, C Mellon; A Seager (capt), D Lane; C Thompson, M Jones, B White, J Stickland, R Fidler, N Reilly, M Hurdle, J Pettigrew. Reps: R White, B Salt, J Markey.

Cheltenham: A Pickford; R Morris, M Whitney, B Constantine, H Rafter; M Wilcox, J Ham; K Saunders, S Rowe, S Moore, P Leibbtant, J Clutterbrook, J Comber, B Malcolm, C Daniell (capt). Reps: K Marshall, T Lait, B Gogh.

Newly-promoted Hartpury College host Cleve, who include former Redruth flanker Fraser Clilverd and Bath University’s Steve Bath at outside centre.

Hartpury College (home v Cleve, 3pm): C Hawkins; P Jarvis, A Wallace, J Botha, J Love; T Stevenson, S Lynn; R Townsend, H Collins, B Featherstone, W Waldron, P Hoy, G Lawler, W Foden, N Thomas. Reps: R Barrington, M Brown, B Field.

Cleve: B Breeze; S Britton, S Bath, M Bateman, N Lear; J Hall, L Fletcher; O Coles, L McMahon, D Cox, B Horman, L Hillier, D Lear, F Clilverd, S Roach (capt). Reps: J Fletcher, S Edwards, A O‘Donnell.

Relegated Bridgwater & Albion show just one addition to their pack, with local lad Howard Brown, who has just come out of the Marines, coming in at openside flanker for their trip to Oxford Harlequins.

Dominik Griffin moves to scrum-half, with Kiwi George Williams at fly-half and his fellow countryman Keiron McHardy at inside centre. Left wing Gavin Hancock could miss the game as he waits for the birth of his second child.

Three new forwards – Nick Brooker, Ed Driver and Ron Burnett – are on the bench.

Bridgwater & Albion (away v Oxford Harlequins, 3pm): W Topps; Damian Griffin, S Osborne, K McHardy, G Hancock; G Williams, Dominik Griffin; A Trunks, M Hastie, J Bryant, A Blundell, D Kemmish, C Brown, H Brown, S Hunt (capt). Reps: N Brooker, R Burnett, E Driver.

Weston-super-Mare have recruited well, including the signing of Joe and Sam Waterman, the brothers of Worcester and England women’s full-back Danielle Waterman from Minehead Barbarians.

Joe starts at full-back as they host Barnstaple tomorrow, with fellow newcomer Steve Thompson on the wing and former Cleve scrum-half Ross Burnett on the bench.

Weston-Super-Mare (home v Barnstaple, 3pm): J Waterman; S Thompson, K Middlemiss, C Young, P Sprague; J Mackay, J Conway; D Price, D Burge, S Williams, A Richards, A Glen, G Simpson, G Wright, G Sparks (capt). Reps: S Doneghan, K Hobbs, R Bennett.

Coney Hill give senior debuts to teenagers Aaron Hawley on the right wing and Nico Woodward at flanker on their trip to Exmouth, while the club’s new captain is inside centre Sean Felice.

Coney Hill (away v Exmouth, 2.30pm): D Davis: A Hawley, M Whelan, S Felice (capt), P Knight; D Brown, C O‘Donnell; J Flinter, R Nicholls, A Pettigrew, C Cooper, S Ellacott, J Robson, N Woodward, C Ballinger. Reps (from): C Smith, T Ozzard, R Cooke, A Macrae.