Gloucester v Bristol could be 'one of best' - Lam

Gloucester and Bristol shared 85 points when they met in September

Gloucester's match with local rivals Bristol on Saturday could be "one of the best" this season, says Bears director of rugby Pat Lam.

Two of the Premiership's most attacking sides sit first and third in the league table for most points scored this campaign.

In Premiership statistics provided by Oval Insights, six out of the top 10 players for most line breaks play for Bristol or the Cherry and Whites, as well as five out of the top 10 for offloads and four out of the top 10 for metres made.

"The game potentially could be one of the best of the season - you've got 4G [pitch], weather's looking good, two teams who want to play. It's certainly going to be uncomfortable for players out there and hopefully enjoyable for the fans," Lam told BBC Radio Bristol.

Second-placed Bristol have long been known for their attacking flair and scored four rapid tries for a bonus point in just 16 minutes in Saturday's 52-38 victory against Exeter - which featured the highest-scoring first half in Premiership history.

But West Country neighbours Gloucester, who sit fifth, have revolutionised their game to a similarly more expansive style this season.

"With Bristol we know what we're getting - it's probably a supercharged version of the way we attack," Gloucester director of rugby George Skivington told BBC Radio Gloucestershire.

"We know it's going to be fast, we know it's going to be a lot of actual minutes of running round.

"I think our attack is closer to Bristol and they do a lot of good stuff at set-pieces as well. I don't think our identity is a million miles away.

"They are very wide-to-wide and they have some great one-off moments and Pat's very sharp with the areas he targets in games."

Gloucester finished ninth last season and were the second-lowest scorers in the league, ahead of only Newcastle.

However, the signings of Wales scrum-half Tomos Williams and fly-half Gareth Anscombe last summer have helped revolutionise their backline.

When the two sides met in September's reverse fixture in round two at Ashton Gate, Gloucester edged an 85-point thriller 44-41.

Lam said they were "shocked" by the Cherry and Whites that day.

"It's fair to say they shocked us in round two - we didn't expect they'd come out playing that way, and having Tomos Williams and Gareth Anscombe and Santi Carreras they certainly played to their strengths," Lam said.

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While the flair in attack has been praised, both coaches dismissed suggestions that defence is being seen as less important.

Only Newcastle have conceded more points than Bristol's 362 over 12 games, with Gloucester similarly letting in an average of 27.5 points per match.

"I don't think anyone's clocking off in defence," Skivington said.

"Both teams are going to make line breaks on Saturday and what happens post that line break is going to be important. But I think both defence coaches will be on their toes come Saturday."

Lam agreed he wants his side to be "entertaining", but still a "complete team".

"We have a style that is entertaining but that is based on hard work," Lam said.

"We want to be a complete team, it's not just about our attack - we've got to get our defence [right] and that's what we'll keep working on."

Bristol have been given a big boost before the match by the return of fly-half AJ MacGinty from a long-term knee injury that has kept him out since the end of December.

Gloucester will likely be without their own first-choice 10 Anscombe, who missed Sunday's defeat at Bath because of a hamstring injury sustained during the Six Nations.