Poach One Player For Your Team

I am truly bored out of my bejeezus and do not want to continue with this contract I'm drafting.

Here's a short and easy scenario:

1. It's Free Transfer Day. You can sign one of the players from another Rabo (or Jeff if you must) franchise to yours. They have to go.
2. Whom do you choose and why?
3. Please provide details of (a) your team, (b) whom you are poaching and (c) why.

As a Glasgow fan , I would have Ruan Pienaar. A 9 like that is the last thing that we need in the absence of Cuss and his goalkicking means that we could play Jackson without soiling ourselves about him missing pots at goal and give Peter Horne a break.

As an Edinburgh fan , I would gladly swap the whole team for a Curlywurley at the moment, but I would settle for Johann Muller as a priority. The diddies need a piece of granite in the tight at the moment and a leader on the pitch. Big Johann would be perfick. Hopefully Bradley will do the gentlemanly thing and throw a blank check at the big chap when his contract is up with Ulster in the summer. That should give Bradley's predecessor something nice to work with.

Surely even we cannot turn this thread into a urinating contest about the Lions, a todger comparison exercise or a thinly veiled sledging of any one particular nationality. Come on, people.

Ospreys.

I'd get 1/2 p in from the blues at full back.

Thats our weakest position at the moment imo. Fuss is doing a decent job and there's some youngsters coming up like Ross Jones but having a solid fast player with an awesome boot would do wonders for us..

Ulster fan, would have Pienaar and Muller back from Scotland.

on a more serious note.

At Ulster would have to take an Irish qualified player as our NIQ slots are full.
Think our only weakness in outhalf, We have Jackson and NOC, and we don't want to rely on NOC, Pienaar works fine there with Marshall, but I'd rather have Ian Madigan.
Sexton prob should be the pick, but his face annoys me, like a gurning baby all the time, can put up with it on Internationals but would just be to often I'd have to see it if he was at Ulster.
Anyway Ian Madigan is younger and between Jackson and him we would have great depth there and I don't think either would be first choice be a real battle for 10, and can pick horses for courses.

Leinster - Nathan Hines back.

Well for the Falcons (yes i know we're not Rabo) can i please have a top notch hooker...and i dont mean the ones on the Bigg Market street corners

Who's standing out at the moment?

At hooker, Best for me has been really good last few seasons, had a few injuries recently, but defintley well in the mix for a Lions place.

SecretFly wrote:Leinster - Nathan Hines back.

Has to be from another Rabo team.Tough choice but yeah definitely a 2nd row we need,I'd probably go for Muller from Ulster we need a big tough enforcer type lock.

Oh sorry, missed the Rabo connection.

Em..Cuthbert.

Scarlets - and i guess it would have to be either Ruan or Laidlaw, as we despirately need a goal kicker, however I would not want to sacrifice anyone from 10-15 to slot one in, so a kicking scrum half is needed and those are the only two I can think of.

Bath - We'd love Jonny Sexton please!

Pienaar or Afoa for the Blues please.

I'd have Keith Earls back at Ulster... He was good for our 7s team

Any No10 will do!

When is Andy Goode's contract up at Worcester?

we need more than one 7 so would take Tipuric.

For Ulster....I'm actually really happy with our squad as it is.

I think extra cover at 10 and 15 would be useful.

Maybe Rob Kearney, Jonny Sexton or even Ian Madigan.

Jared Payne to 13.

I'd take Steffon Armitage back at Irish. Our backrow has suffered since he left.

rodders wrote:For Ulster....I'm actually really happy with our squad as it is.

You might at least have the good grace to pretend that your squad can be improved, Rodders.

Ulster don't need anyone else's players, of course.... but I do think Ulster could actually do with another head above Anscombes' and Humphreys'. You can never have too many bosses in the stands looking over each other's shoulders

SOB at Connacht.

OK then......I want fly to come on board to look over Humphs shoulder .

Difficult to know where to start with Edinburgh.....

I'd take Sexton and shift Laidlaw back to 9. Would give us at the very least half backs to control the game.

For Munster I'd poach SOB.

Hmmm......where to begin.....As a Munster fan I think we have to admit to a few weak areas but the stand out priority....

I'd nick Ross from Leinster. While I still hold out hope thatArcher can make the HEC grade (and obviously Botha is an excellent TH) I want an IQ guy at 3. Perhaps juvenile but there you go. Other positions like the back row and even 2nd row are covered in the sense that while the older guys are not as yet being pushed out by younger & better players, we have some depth.

At SH, while Duncan Williams is no fans favourite, Stringer is not the answer to any rugby question in 2012. The game has passed a faithful and 100% honest guy out. Time to exit stage left & he should have heard the curtain call last season. While his passing is still prob the best on the island, you need to be able to more than that these days at 9. Harsh, but true nonetheless.

I mean all the criticism of ROG and the Irish/Munster management re his involvement is not without merit, but at least he can teach Keatley (and JJ) somehting about the 2012 game. He tries to run at the line, he can still manage a game and his kicking while not as excellent as it once was out of hand, is still pretty good, but nothing Stringer does is somehting that the other 9's can't do themselves. Imho.

debaters1 wrote: but nothing Stringer does is somehting that the other 9's can't do themselves. Imho.

...actually quite a bit of what he could do in his prime, few 9s in Ireland look like they can do themselves as easily and naturally (fast thought processes in fast games, quick decisions and rapid delivery of the ball and/or control of a moving pack to gain most advantage) So, he has his limits and, yes, he is the past, but the current crop have their own limitations.... and Murray certainly has his.

Do you think Stringer would spend next season in Connacht?
Kieran Marmion seams to be a real find, and a year of learning from Stringer, and sharing gametime between them wouldn't harm his development?

Quite happy so many people would poach Ulster players, but we could do with Ian Madigan, that would leave no areas that I'd be worried about, (if everyone was fit).

Stringer should be hanging up his boots, not not going to Connacht and blocking another players progress. I don't think he has much to offer either Connacht or Marmion at this stage of his career.

debaters, wasn't it Munster that dumped Ross out of the Irish system in the first place? You have only yourselves to blame...

For Quins, I'm in the rodders camp of being happy with our lot. Probably the one thing that could immediately add to the squad would be another top notch lock or TH. So we'd happily have Mike Ross back, though he'd have to be prepared to rotate with JJ, or we'd take Richie Gray away from his grim naarthen existence.

Alternatively, give me a time machine so I can have Greenwood back at 12, or cloning technology so I can have an extra Robshaw in addition to the 2 that normally play.

Surely there are loads of wingers you'd want for Quins? Can't think of many teams in the world that Tommy Bowe wouldn't get in.

There is one player I'd like to drop into boiling water at the moment.

rodders wrote:Stringer should be hanging up his boots, not not going to Connacht and blocking another players progress. I don't think he has much to offer either Connacht or Marmion at this stage of his career.

Agreed - he can't have much more to offer.

He's already made the single line break in his entire international career (against Scotland, unfortunately).

Actually, I'd see a lock or a backup tighthead as a higher priority. But then I was a forward myself...

The back three options we have suit our gameplan and aren't exactly starving us of tries. Ugo Monye's earned a recall for England, and while Tom Williams is known to everyone other than Quins fans for something else, for the past 12 months he's been in absolutely stunning form as an all-round player. At the moment he's worth about 10 points a game for what he creates and for the tries he saves.

Poorfour,

It was indeed Munster's decision to cut him loose. But part of being a man is admitting you're wrong, and I'd say every single person involved with Mike Ross while he was at Munster would hold their hands up immediately and say they got that one wrong.

A back up tighthead? why not just get Dan Cole and have JJ as backup?!

funnyExiledScot wrote:Difficult to know where to start with Edinburgh.....

I'd take Sexton and shift Laidlaw back to 9. Would give us at the very least half backs to control the game.

Laidlaw would not do any better at 9, they dont win scrums, they dont win lineouts, and they get murdered at the breakdown.
He wont get any ball, so theres no point.

ScarletSpiderman wrote:Scarlets - and i guess it would have to be either Ruan or Laidlaw, as we despirately need a goal kicker, however I would not want to sacrifice anyone from 10-15 to slot one in, so a kicking scrum half is needed and those are the only two I can think of.

You have got the Welsh starting 9 !
LOL !

Imagine if Stinger had the pace and acceleration of Paul Marshall!

As a Dragons fan I'd have to go for the biggest, ugliest, nastiest, tighthead prop that we could get our hands on. Adam Jones, Dan Cole, those sort of characters. Someone who could really anchor our scrum. Any other suggestions?

As a Tigers fan I'd poach Ben Foden to take over from Murphy at FB.

Or perhaps Jonny May. We do need some pace in that backline. I've heard rumours of that happening at the end of the season too

Or perhaps Mat Tait could just GET FIT ENOUGH TO PLAY SOME GAMES!!!!

For Quins its either some xfactor in the backs so one of May or Wade. Right now we have no one who can create something from nothing except Tom Williams

Or a big unit in the pack like Manoa or Richie Gray. Actually yes Richie Gray please! We'll save him from his Sale nightmare!

For Quins its either some xfactor in the backs so one of May or Wade. Right now we have no one who can create something from nothing except Tom Williams

Or a big unit in the pack like Manoa or Richie Gray. Actually yes Richie Gray please! We'll save him from his Sale nightmare!

I know this started as a Rabo string, but the Premiership lads have just snuck in the back door.

So, as a Saints supporter, I need someone to play fly half.
Desperately.
Therefore, I choose to poach...........

Freddy Michalak from Toulon. He played great for Sharks, and Saints need that extra spark and dynamism.
Or,
if I need to select an English Qualified player, I also go to France and bring back the eternal hero...............

Samu Manoa, from
Saints as we need the grunt in the secod row and the carrying. I support Quins

doctor_grey wrote:I know this started as a Rabo string, but the Premiership lads have just snuck in the back door.

So, as a Saints supporter, I need someone to play fly half.
Desperately.
Therefore, I choose to poach...........

Freddy Michalak from Toulon. He played great for Sharks, and Saints need that extra spark and dynamism.
Or,
if I need to select an English Qualified player, I also go to France and bring back the eternal hero...............

...and our fly half would still be better than yours ;-)

I'd be tempted to nick Nigel Owens from Leinster.

greytiger wrote:I'd be tempted to nick Nigel Owens from Leinster.

Leinster definitely need a second row. If it's got to be the Pro12 then I'd take Muller (there would be something very wrong about POC in blue), if i can expand to England, I'd take Gray, outside of that I'd take one of those Whitelock lads or Andries Bekker.

My team Ospreys

I'd like George North from the Scarlets.

this post blew my mind. You're an edinburgh fan and a glasgow fan. that is crazy.

for Scarlets i'd take a goal kicker so probably leigh halfpenny

for Glasgow I'd take some incisive running so Israel Dagg...

For Ulster, it would have to be a blindside to replace Stephen Ferris. Ferris could maybe have as little as one season left in his body before he has to retire.

If it had to be an Irish player, Peter O'Mahony, although realistically there is no Irishman capable of what Ferris is at his best. If it could be any nationality, Iosefa Tekori from Castres could do a good impression of him.

Apart from that, all the top class sides have two top tightheads. So Mike Ross (Irish option) or Adam Jones (NIQ) to provide cover for John Afoa from the bench.