The Blackthorn cash should allow them to raise the stakes in their pursuit of Neil Jenkins, the Welsh international stand-off, as well as chase a world-class scrum-half, at least one wing forward and a pair of ball-winning locks.However, they will also use their strong commercial position to underpin efforts to secure a venue capable of accommodating the 15,000 spectators they believe they can attract on a weekly basis. The recently crowned European champions were toasting a three- year sponsorship deal with Blackthorn Cider worth a cool pounds 2m - enough new money to finance a substantial raid on the transfer market this summer.Given that Bath are already underwritten to the tune of pounds 2 million by their local jet-setting tycoon, Andrew Brownsword, and are in the early weeks of a lucrative kit deal with Adidas, they now possess more financial clout than any of their Premiership rivals. On the other hand, Vickery will probably take the philosophical approach; after all, had it not been for the inability of the Welsh management to stick to a perfectly straightforward citing procedure, the rookie front-rower would have picked up a 30-day suspension for thumping Colin Charvis at Twickenham a month ago and missed the Murrayfield date anyway.Adebayo's call-up was not the only good news being celebrated at Bath yesterday. Adedayo Adebayo, the Bath wing dropped by Woodward after the international with New Zealand at Old Trafford last November, is now certain to win his sixth cap against the Scots on Sunday. Bracken's shoulder condition may have saved him the embarrassment of sharing in Saracens' defeat at Gloucester four days ago, but any sense of relief turned to sickening disappointment when the injury failed to respond to treatment yesterday. Ironically enough, Vickery, one of the Test contingent who did brave the fires of Kingsholm, finished the match with a decidedly Brackenesque shoulder problem of his own.Woodward has for some time enjoyed options at both scrum-half and tight- head prop, but as he finalised his line-up last night it seemed likely that the doughty Midlanders, Matt Dawson and Darren Garforth, would be recalled. Dawson made a heroic name for himself during the Lions series in South Africa, while Garforth scrummaged himself to a standstill during the pre-Christmas SANZA series before coming unstuck against Christian Califano in Paris last month.Bracken will be the most concerned of the injured quartet, simply because he and Dawson are so closely matched. The response to the invitation at this week's meeting of the National Conference - the amateur game's elite competition - was described as "lukewarm"..

"It doesn't change our attitude to the circumstances of the injury, but it would be a major blow to be without one of our trump cards."Sheffield's Silk Cut Challenge Cup semi-final against Salford will be staged at Headingley a week on Saturday. The Rugby League has decided against taking the London-Wigan semi-final the next day to a new venue in the Midlands, and it will be played at Huddersfield."Our strategy is only to take major matches to development areas where we have full-time personnel working at grassroots level to raise public awareness," the League's acting chief executive, Neil Tunnicliffe, said.Amateur clubs are being offered the prospect of joining the Rugby League. CLIVE WOODWARD imposed 24 hours of purdah on his Calcutta Cup squad yesterday, which was probably just as well considering that half of them were quite literally unfit to be seen in public. No fewer than four players - David Rees, Tony Underwood, Kyran Bracken and Phil Vickery - failed to negotiate a secretive training session at Twickenham and, as a result, the England coach was left to ponder some unexpectedly tricky selection decisions.

Last weekend's furious Allied Dunbar Premiership hostilities cut a serious swathe through Woodward's wing population; Rees, an eye-catching bonus for England this season, damaged a groin muscle during Sale's victory over Harlequins, while Underwood, the Test Lion recalled to national colours after a season's absence, twisted a knee during Newcastle's capitulation at Richmond. The First and Second Division Association has invited applications from clubs who aspire to play at a higher level, with those from outside the game's traditional areas particularly welcome.The plan is for the present system of 11 clubs in the First Division and eight in the Second to be replaced by a First Division of 14 sides and a Second of 12 or 14. Hemel Hempstead are obvious candidates, while FASDA has said it would welcome an application from Blackpool, who announced that they would fold after failing to win back their place in the League.Whether leading amateur clubs will be willing to switch to a summer season and compete against professional sides with News Corporation funding is uncertain, however. Meanwhile, his jaw remains too swollen for doctors to be sure whether there is a break. "If there is, he will miss our opening Super League matches," a club spokesman said.