Watford is the birthplace of Thomson's mother a fact that makes him

Watford is the birthplace of Thomson's mother, a fact that makes him eligible for England. Ben Sturnham, a summer signing from Saracens, makes his debut, while the England Under- 21 player Iain Balshaw comes in for the injured Matt Perry and South African scrum-half Steve Hatley gets in ahead of Andy Nicol.Josh Lewsey, the England outside-half, finds himself in the less familiar role of full-back when he makes his Wasps debut against Bath. Gareth Rees, the Canadian international, wears the No10 shirt in the absence of the injured Alex King, while Lewsey's former Bristol colleague, Eben Rollitt, comes in to the back row for Lawrence Dallaglio who has still not recovered from a shoulder injury.Alain Penaud and Jeremy Thomson step into the roles left vacant by Michael Lynagh and Philippe Sella respectively when Saracens entertain Northampton at Watford on Sunday. That is where Kevin Yates will be found, six months after being found guilty of biting London Scottish flanker Simon Fenn's ear in a Tetley's Bitter Cup match last January. The loosehead position is taken by the Scottish international prop, Dave Hilton.

Just 24 hours before the Welsh rebels Cardiff and Swansea are due to kick off against Bedford and West Hartlepool (strike action permitting) on a Saturday scheduled for a full Allied Dunbar Premiership programme, the RFU's management board is no nearer a compromise. Twickenham officials do not want Anglo-Welsh games to be played on Premiership weekends and will not be supplying match officials or providing insurance. The clubs insist that, by law, they cannot be prevented from staging the so-called friendlies but have indicated their willingness to compromise over their fixture arrangements so that the cross-border matches could not be associated with the Allied Dunbar Premiership. But after a lengthy meeting at Twickenham yesterday the management board decided to put the options open to the RFU to a full council meeting next Friday. The only certainty is that the clubs will have to find qualified match officials, either from Wales or among those not contracted with the RFU for the whole programme.Of the matches that do go ahead there is almost as much attention centred on the bench for Bath's opening tussle against Wasps at the Recreation Ground tomorrow. IT WAS looking certain last night that there would be no immediate solution to the protracted wrangling between the top English clubs and the Rugby Football Union.

There is talk now that Irish may leave Sunbury and may even play the odd match in Ireland or at Highbury in North London where there is a big base for support The Have Nots appear to be stirring at last.. Like Brewer at West, Best has encouraged his players to set realistic targets for the season: "We will be looking to end up around seventh in the Allied Dunbar Premiership."That may sound like pie in the sky but like Brewer, Best is a shrewd judge of rugby flesh He may have limited resources but he shops wisely. "I have signed a full-back called Jarrod Cunningham from Wellington in New Zealand," he says. "People will ask, Jarrod who? But in fact he sits in Christian Cullen's slipstream He is very good. We also have a great captain in Conor O'Shea."There are a host of other names, some better known than others, and by the time their half-back pairing of Kevin Putt, of South Africa, and the New Zealander Steve Bachop has linked up with Irish later this autumn they should turn into a daunting prospect."People are going to see a competitive Irish side," Best, stresses "a side that wants to do well." Brewer, too, is confident that West will be competitive.West begin the new season at a new ground, Hartlepool United Football Club's Victoria Park.

But he could have his work cut out as he tries to instill a belief into the Exiles that they can compete with the best.He certainly refutes the thought that they will be down at the bottom again, the whipping boys for the big spenders. We had all sorts of contracts here last year, part-timers, those paid per match and so on, so we had a bit of a clearout."A number of the Exiles were tempted back to Ireland by the Irish RFU offering amazing deals to try to get some of their top players back where it is felt they belong Best bears no grudges. "A lot of those coming in from other parts of the world are Irish passport-holders and we have retained quite a lot of the better players from last season. After a summer clearout that saw 26 players leaving the club, it is fair to wonder if there are any Irish players left in Sunbury "Probably a third of the squad is Irish," Best insists. "His club are insisting he sees out the final year of his contract," says a glum Brewer.But while Brewer expects his side to struggle initially, he is optimistic that the realistic targets they have set themselves for the season will be met, which will mean retaining their top-flight status at the end of the season."The clubs which have been promoted will find it difficult," says Brewer. "Firstly, they will have to adapt to the faster pace of the Premiership game, and it is a lot faster than the Second Division. Secondly, for those players who have only ever experienced playing Second Division rugby there will be a mental, a psychological problem of adapting to life in the Premiership."There is a similar problem for Dick Best as he whips his squad into shape.

"I have the luxury of having played around the world," explains the former All Black back-row specialist. "I can rely on the network of former international players and coaches I have met to steer me in the right direction as far as buying players goes."He also has the know-how to steer those players he signs in the direction he wants West to go - which is up. "Last year when I played I found I was having to coach on the pitch," adds Brewer. "This time around the guys have been together for some time and have begun to establish a pattern and a style for themselves, so if I do have to play then at least I will be able to play my own game."This season, however, it looks like he will have competition for places and he is still trying to sign the French international back-row Philippe Benetton from Agen. They have been paying astronomical sums of money to players who do not deserve to command half what they are receiving.