Interesting debut: Sam Burgess' Bath debut 'fascinating' - Stuart Lancaster

Sam Burgess is named on the bench for their Aviva Premiership clash against Harlequins at the Recreation Ground for the Friday night fixture.

Burgess is set to play minutes at centre, to complete his code hop from rugby league - defecting after five years with NRL club the South Sydney Rabbitohs.

England coach Stuart Lancaster said Burgess' inclusion - one month ahead of schedule, and two months after his courageous performance for South Sydney Rabbitohs in the NRL grand final - was "fascinating".

Burgess fractured his cheekbone in the first tackle of the Rabbitohs' grand final victory, but played on through the pain - and earned man-of-the-match honours.

"It's a bonus that he's starting this early, but it's a long way to go before we start picking our World Cup squad," Lancaster said.

"It will come down to how he plays; the earlier he learns how to play the game, the more he can learn about it.

"Having worked in the north at Leeds we've had a lot of players come across from league. Some adapted very quickly and others took longer.

"I'm pleased, and I'll be watching: it will be fascinating to see how he goes.

"Obviously he's been passed fit and has learned the game pretty quickly.

"He's watched a lot of union so the next step is to have a crack. It's great that Bath have put him in there."