Big Al Strokosch to Perpignan

Every Cherry and Scotland fan's favourite baldy psycho, looks like Big Al Strokosch is leaving for a stint in the Top 14:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/rugby-union/16907014

He will do well there and return an even better player.

A shame for him that he is the same era as Kelly Brown but he's been an excellent servant for Scotland and I don't recall him ever having a bad day.

Good man, Al.

Shame for Glaws that he's heading to pastures new, but hope he enjoys his last few years in the sun - think he'll become a USAP favourite, and that his body doesn't give out on him

This is a real loss for Glaws, he's been a fantastic servant and his play is typified by his work rate. He is the type of 6 I like, does all the unseen hard work, not flash and an absolute tough nut - with his martial art background he is the one player you do not want to mess with!!

Good luck Strokes, enjoy the sunshine

The only positive about his leaving is that it is giving us the opportunity to restructure our backrow. With the exception of Qera we have no ball carrying players and sometimes you just need a big lump who can get you over the gain line. It is seeming increasingly likely that Narraway will stay with us after all, so I wouldn't be surprised to see him move to 6 with a new, big 8 coming in - we're being linked to Morgan and Kalamafoni and i feel that latter is more likely due to our likely signing of Jimmy Cowan taking up the salary.

I thought you had pretty good 9 options with Lawson and Lewis HKC, bit suprising that you're planning a big signing like Cowan. I thought you'd be saving the cash for pack reinforcements.

I don't think we're in any rush to re-sign Lawson. Whilst he is an excellent defensive SH, he is not the best at getting our backline going. In his 6 years with Glaws I think I have seen him make precisely 2 breaks - I think he is allergic to them! Which certainly makes defending against him pretty easy! Whilst Lewis definitely has potential I have been a little disappointed that he has failed to push on this season, so the jury is still slightly out. I do understand the rational behind this potential signing, as the rest of the backline with the exception of Sinbad are all youngsters, so a bit of experience wouldn't go a miss.

I do completely agree though we need more forwards. As per the thread we're definitely losing Strokes, but there are a number of players we don't seem to be in any hurry to re-sign, namely the other Lawson, Buxton and Deacon. However, it sounds pretty certain Voyce is off and Dean Ryan's parting gift to us was to sign him to a 3 year deal that meant his final year he is earning close to £200k! So that should get us a decent forward!

Well you should have some cash to spend on forwards if you are going to offload those 3 experienced forwards plus Strokosch and Voyce. Any preferred targets?

Though please keep your mits off of the talent at Welford Rd we could do without you stealing any more of the younger talent we've got, though contracts are under renewal for Waldrom, Bucknall and Newby and I'm not massively fussed about them (I'd drive Bucknall to Goucester).

We couldn't take Bucknall - I insist!

You know us Glaws fans like the locals, so Morgan would be fantastic, except unlikely. We've also been linked to Huia Edmonds at hooker and he'd add a bit of the Britz factor. I'd be quite happy with taking a punt on some championship players as we've had a good track record there, so someone like the London Welsh 8 would be interesting.

Has anyone snapped up the Pirates openside (former Bath academy player)? He was very good in the play off games last season and he would fit in with the Glaws running philosophy, presuming that stint of form wasn't a flash in the pan. Fairly local to Glaws as well.

formerly known as Sam wrote:Has anyone snapped up the Pirates openside (former Bath academy player)? He was very good in the play off games last season and he would fit in with the Glaws running philosophy, presuming that stint of form wasn't a flash in the pan. Fairly local to Glaws as well.

He is definitely a player with bags of potential, but I'm not sure we need a 7. A lot of people don't feel Qera is a 7, however, I just feel he is a different type. Andy Hazell still gives his all and when fit pushes Q all the way, but Matt Cox has been earmarked as our long term 7. I want us to get someone like Kris Chesney a few years ago, big & nasty!! We had rather hoped Brett Deacon would fill that role, but he's always ended up getting injured before he can string a real run of games together.

Quera and Cox strike me as more 6.5 than straight out 7s where as Hazell is a bottom of the ruck "look what I 'found'" sort openside. Can understand the want of a slightly nasty forward option though you signed the wrong Deacon brother it's Louis who gets stuck in well out of sight from the ref (he's suprisingly good at it). There does seem to be to many 'athletic' forwards and not enough 'enforcer' types at present in the AP. Tigers have had a devil of a job to find a replacement for Deacon as Edinburgh lured away his intial replacement from the academy who Glaws now have (Jim Hamilton). A nasty number 8 to replace Waldrom and compete with Crane wouldn't go amiss either.

I completely agree, there is a real lack off the old school enforcer. Clearly the game has changed so we're not talking a boxer (although that IS something Brett Deacon is good at!), but as you say there just seems to be too many athletic show ponies, which is reflected in the lightweight backrow England are fielding.

I think it shows in the lightweight back England are fielding. Let's be honest in the days of Johnno, Kay and the holy trinity backrow Botha and Palmer would get no where near the team and neither would Dowson. Botha is good at tackling and charge downs and that is his limit. Palmer is a decent all rounder but does not excel at anything particuarly. Dowson has not got the agression or the power to be an 8 at international level and England badly need that power if Robshaw and Croft are to continue as the flankers.

I'm sure this is the reason our clubs keep losing out to the Irish provinces in the HEC. They are methodically dirty at every ruck maul and lineout, we are just to neat and need get in amongst as they do. Whether it's the differences in officiating between the different European leagues or whether the age grade players are just to schooled in the art of pretty rugby I don't know.

I think you're spot on. My hope is that the real future of the pack is elsewhere. Lawes, Attwood and Garvey should provide the physicality in the boiler room, along with Fearns and Morgan in the backrow. I firmly believe Rupert Harden is the prop to start challenging Cole too. But will the management team see it that way or prefer the ponies that appear in the calendars?...

I don't think Cole could ever be called a show pony so clearly the influence of Rowntree still reigns supreme when it comes to choosing tightheads at least.

With a bit of luck Crane will back next year as well and so England will have better meaty options available for 8. Deacon will have returned to fitness, Slater is progressing well as is Attwood and now Garvey has his foot in the door he'll get chance to force it open. There are some options but necessarily the plethora we'd like!

Cole and Hartley are really the only grunt we have, so more would be most welcome. I do feel Cole, and Hartley to that matter, would benefit from having viable competition to push their own game on even further. Wilson and Stevens are just not good enough to challenge Cole. PDJ might get there, but my money (without any bias!) is on Harden to do the challenging. Whether he gets ahead of Cole is a different matter.

Well Cole is developing well for a young prop (still only 23/24) and the rotation with Castro is pushing him on and keeping both of them in top shape. With a bit of luck this should hopefully see him really start to do more of the carrying work in the tight but we'll see. Hartley has it a little easy at Saints and currently there is no one challenging him for England, that needs to change as his form has slipped this season and he's under no pressure to step up.

Harden seems to be doing well for Glaws, might need another season before a cap comes his way though. There likely to be any more competition signed for him at Glaws?

I think Harden's competition will increasingly come from Shaun Knight. He had a good stint with Edinburgh earlier this season and now seems to be our 2nd choice and being only 21 this should bode well.

Cole may not have competition at national level, but at club level it is ridiculous! That'll certainly keep him honest.

Brookes, Castro and White are all very good tightheads or will be in Brookes' case so he will have to keep up his form or lose his place. Hopefully with the signing of Samoan international Mullipola (that guy is mahoosive, 20 stone 'lean') who is a bullocking ball carrier but average scrummager at the moment he should be forced into a little more carrying work to keep up as the Samoan can play both sides.

Looks like Jason White could be making the opposite journey across the channel. He's out of contract in the summer at ASM Clermont and will either consider a move to another French club or a move back to Scotland. So will he go to Glasgow in the role intended originally for Chris Masoe?

Having seen him playing (badly) for the Barbarians I don't think he'd get a look in at Glasgow. If he came back I suspect it would be in a player/coaching capacity. He now looks too slow to be a 6, and I never really saw him as a lock (plus Glasgow will have Campbell and McAlpine coming through the ranks next season).