Pat Lam has named 19-year-old Tom Wilstead as Bristol Bears’ back-up fly-half option to face Wasps on Sunday.
The teenager is named in his first Gallagher Premiership squad with Bristol missing Callum Sheedy and Ioan Lloyd on international duty with Wales, and Max Malins named in the England 23 to take on Ireland on Saturday.
Sam Below starts in the number 10 jersey in the Premiership for the first time having played all his top flight league rugby for the Bears in the centres.
Bristol’s other senior fly-half, Tiff Eden, has been ruled out the match with a dead leg.
Wilstead joined the Bristol Bears Integrated Academy back in July 2020 having graduated through the system from U13s.
The fly half, who can also operate in midfield, is a product of Cleve RFC and Colstons School and was named in the England U18 training squad in February 2020.
Speaking to the club back in August having been thrown in to train regularly with the senior squad just months after being a standout performer for the Bristol U18s side in the academy finals day, Wilstead said: “Obviously, it’s a step up from a school or U18s environment. I think the main thing for us two is to learn as much as we can, as quickly as we can.
“People like Charles and Semi, some of the best in the world in their positions, they’ve got a lot to give to us young guys and we’re just trying to pick their brains as much as possible.”
“The most challenging thing so far is the amount of detail we’re going into. At U18s or schoolboy rugby, you can get away with being off on little details, but here you’ve got to be on point and that’s something that we’ve got to pick up as we go along – and if we make a mistake, making sure we adjust it for the next time.”
In many ways Wilstead is the definition of what Lam is looking for in a Bristol player having come through the club's development pathways while being involved in the England set-up for his age groups.
Lam has proved with Ioan Lloyd's quick promotion into the first team during the last campaign that age is just a number to him.
Lloyd marked his Premiership debut on the opening day of the 2019/20 season with a try Bristol's 43-16 derby triumph over Bath.
The full back touched down three minutes from time in the season opener, applying the finishing touches to Luke Morahan’s scything outside break.
And now just over a year from making his professional debut for the Bears, Lloyd is set to make his international debut tomorrow for Wales having been named on the bench to face Georgia.
