BBC Sportrugbyunion

Head coach: Richard Hill
Captain: Joe El Abd
Ground: Memorial Stadium (11,976 capacity)
Last season: GP - 9th
HC - group stages
England elite squad players: 0

If you believe the bookmakers, Bristol are set for a battle with Newcastle to avoid relegation and their cause is not helped by the loss of England scrum-half Shaun Perry with a shoulder injury.

But at least coach Richard Hill will not be stripped of any players for Test duty, for the time being anyway, having again dipped into National League One for the majority of his signings.

He will hope two other arrivals, fly-half Adrian Jarvis (left) and lock Robert Sidoli, compensate for the departed Jason Strange and the retired Gareth Llewellyn, while fit-again number eight Dan Ward-Smith should prosper under some of the new laws.

"We are well prepared, we've had one of the best pre-seasons we have ever had. We have to be as we only have six new players. It's always Bristol and someone else that are favourites for relegation every year but we get used to that and yet again we have to prove people wrong."
Head coach Richard Hill