London Scottish have announced an agreement with Harlequins to dual-register five of their players.
Lock Sam Twomey extends his stay in Richmond having already made 12 appearances on a dual-registered basis and will be joined by fellow lineout partner at ‘Quins – George Merrick.
Junior World Cup winners Harry Sloan, 20, and James Chisholm, 18, also join Mike Friday’s side to add depth at centre and the back row.
While scrum-half Sam Stuart also makes the switch and will be looking to put a series of knee injuries behind him.
“We are fortunate to have a great relationship with Harlequins which has got stronger and stronger in recent seasons,” said director of rugby Friday.
“Quins appreciate that their players benefit from the environment at London Scottish and we certainly benefit because the players seem to adjust very quickly to what we are looking for in terms of core values.”
Academy manager at Harlequins, Tony Diprose added, “The development that our young players get by testing themselves at Championship level is vital to their future development. Over the last few years we have had players play at Scottish and at other clubs like Esher and Ealing.
“Those links are great and we want to make sure the young guys have an opportunity to play. London Scottish are very competitive and very well coached, in the past by Simon Amor, and now with Mike Friday, so that gives us an opportunity to do that.”
ADAM ELLIS