Reiss Price will make a quick return to the Bournville ranks in Saturday’s National Two West opener at Redruth (3pm).
Scrum-half Price joined Birmingham Moseley over the summer but is not required by them for their National One match against Cambridge so he has been loaned back to Bournville.
Price comes into the starting XV at Redruth and renews the half-back partnership with Jacob Fewtrell which helped Bourns win Regional One Midlands last season.
Wing Cam Smith makes his comeback having missed most of last season after he suffered a badly broken arm in the victory over Stourbridge at Avery Fields. Smith joined Bourns on loan from Moseley ahead of the sway game at Bromsgrove last September but his season was cut short when he sustained the arm injury making a tackle in the opening exchanges the following week.
There is a familiar look to Saturday’s starting XV with 12 of last season’s regulars from the title-winning squad alongside two debutants in former Leicester Academy centre Oscar van Deventer and back-row forward Patrick Smallman, a summer recruit from Bridgnorth who impressed in the pre-season friendly at Sheffield Tigers two weeks ago.
There are two more new signings on the bench in centre Will Tanner, who played alongside Sam Grimshaw for North Midlands in their County Championship Division Two-winning campaign last season, and scrum-half Joe Carter, both of whom have arrived from Bromsgrove.
Also on the bench is back-row forward Harry Sigley who will be available on a more regular basis this season having completed his studies at Cardiff Met University and Poland Under-20s international prop Kuba Kijak.
The absentees include Kieran Henderson who is unavailable for Bourns’ longest trip in a season of lengthy awaydays.
Bournville | 15 Oscar Fawkes-Underwood; 14 Cam Smith, 13 Oscar van Deventer, 12 Sam Grimshaw, 11 Adam Collingwood; 10 Jacob Fewtrell, 9 Reiss Price; 1 Scott Rudge, 2 Jamie Harding, 3 Clarkson McLeod, 4 Ben Meakin (C), 5 Harry Dawson, 6 Patrick Smallman, 7 Adam Shaw, 8 Callum Nicholls.
Replacements | 16 Jonjo Fanning, 17 Kuba Kijak, 18 Harry Sigley, 19 Joe Carter, 20 Will Tanner.
