Pat Lam chose not to deny that former Wallabies international Luke Morahan could make a surprise midseason switch to Bayonne.
France’s leading sports newspaper Midi Olympique is reporting Bayonne have signed Morahan, 32, as a medical joker to replace full back Gaëtan Germain who suffered a season-ending ACL injury last weekend against Montpellier.
Asked directly about the rumours coming out of France in his midweek press conference ahead of flying off to Perpignan this weekend to face the French Top 14 side, Lam initially played a straight bat to the line of questioning, will not offering a denial.
He said: “Like I always say recruitment and retention is ongoing, as soon as there is something different I will tell you.”
READ MORE: Bristol Bears favourites to land former Wasps front rower
Morahan missed Bristol’s 26-26 draw with Leicester Tigers on Saturday but Lam confirmed there were no alternative motives behind that. He said: “He was injured last week. Hopefully, he will be back this week. We are hoping he will be good to go this weekend.”
But then in a potentially illuminating additional comment, Lam said: “We have seen it go right through the Premiership, this is the issue with the reduced salary cap. You see Luke Cowan-Dickie is following Sam Simmonds from Exeter Chiefs to Montpellier, and there is plenty of movement around.
“Everyone is trying to negotiate their way around [the reduced £5m salary cap with just one marquee player permitted]. There are players who don’t want to move and teams who don’t want to see players go but the reality is that is what is happening in the Premiership, we have to negotiate our way through it.
“You have seen [Nemani] Nadolo leave Leicester halfway through the season and there are a couple of other players do the same elsewhere.
“It doesn’t surprise me you see these rumours because everyone has to negotiate their way through.”
Morahan’s exit rumours come against a backdrop of last Spring’s revelations the winger was one of a number of players Bristol were reported to be looking to offload at the end of the 2021/22 season only to miss a contractual deadline which saw automatic renewals kick in, tying their hands.
While Morahan has been a firm fan favourite in his five and half years at the club, Lam may well have calculated that his salary is best spent elsewhere with tighthead prop looking a potential problem area over the next four months with England star Kyle Sinckler currently injured and then likely to be away through out the Six Nations.
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