Players handed chance to impress Redpath at Carnegie

For in the summer, the 43-year-old former Gloucester and Sale chief, plans to add five to six new players.

Redpath takes charge of his first game today at Plymouth Albion

“Over the next two to three weeks we’ll see where we need to be,” said Redpath.

“I need to see everybody in the heat of the battle and whether they are at an age where they can keep improving to a level where we need them to be.

“There’s some great young talent but that young talent needs some old heads around it as well and see how they bounce off each other.

“There are some good players across the board, no question.

“But we need five or six players and over the next two to three weeks I’ll see where and how they will fit into that squad and who is available that will add to the squad.”

Rotherham Titans are continuing to look to the future as well as the present when they welcome Bristol today.

Lee Blackett’s side have already secured deals for more than a dozen players to return to the club next season, and are still working to tie down influential backs Michael Keating and James McKinney.

Their top-four ambitions are of more immediate concern, with Bristol up at Clifton Lane today seeking to get their own campaign back on track after last week’s surprise British and Irish Cup semi-final defeat at Doncaster.

Centre Mark Cooke, who is on a dual-registration contract at Rotherham from Bristol, has been granted permission to play.

Doncaster Knights continued their good recent form with a 13-13 draw away at third-placed London Scottish on Friday evening.

On the back of a semi-final victory over Championship high-fliers Bristol the week previous, Clive Griffiths’s team faced a Scottish side who had all but secured a play-off place knew a result would not come easily.

The South Yorkshiremen trailed after 10 minutes when fly-half Peter Lydon successfully slotted an early penalty but Tyler Hotson put the Knights on the board with a try shortly after.

After the break, the hosts lost both Lewis Ludlow and Lee Millar to the sin bin but the Knights couldn’t benefit.

Dougie Flockhart gave the Knights a seven-point lead, but former Knights player Matty Williams touched down to level the game in the closing minutes.