Silly Season Transfer Rumours 19/20

First topic message reminder :

New year, new thread, new scuttlebutt, rumour and misdirection.

LondonTiger wrote:KC,

Having come into contact with him at charity dinner and a coaching conference I have a little disquiet about him being able to settle within the area.

Well it seems more likely to be Borthwick so rest easy.

Yeah saw the Borthwick rumours. Struggle to see what role we could offer that would suit our needs AND his ambitions.

LondonTiger wrote:Yeah saw the Borthwick rumours. Struggle to see what role we could offer that would suit our needs AND his ambitions.

DOR or Murphy to DOR and Borthwick as head coach. Quite frankly our forwards play is abysmal and our lineout poor. Two things Borthwick should really help with. He's probably looking at Gustard and wondering whether a HC prem job at Tigers who are in desperate need of a rebuild is a better option than waiting to see if he can snare the England job post RWC.

Chris Harris confirmed to have activated his relegation release clause but no destination yet known. (Edit - Looking like Gloucester right enough)

Another im not fussed on losing...we have much better replacements coming through.

Wasps confirmed the signing of 22 year old winger Paolo Odogwu from Sharks, bringing the winger back to his home town of Coventry.

I don't know too much about him, but Dai said "... lot of potential and has a bit of x-factor about him". Sounds promising, I guess!

Not announced the Kibirige signing yet, as far as I know, though.

Yeah nothing on Zach, but i think it'll be soon. We have a few announcments coming up...and a couple of contract renewals aswell apparently.

Reckon Wilson's plan for the next season will be one of the announcements GD?

Yeah more than likely.

But apparently the likes of Scotland prop Jon Welsh , Johnny Williams etc might all be staying so it'll be nice to hear the confirmed squad list for next season.

If they get it right on the coaching / tactics etc front and blood the kids the right way...we could have a much stronger side in a few years time than the one that got us 4th spot a year ago.

Some belting kids coming through.

Johnny Williams is a class operator. He'll tear up the championship if he stays next season.

Will also do guys like Callum Chick a load of good to continue their progression.

Johnny could well do with a season of solid rugby...regardless at what level. Maybe he will stay and do that with us. I hope so.

Calum Chick will take over a senior roll with us now. He's a good player...but we have lots of others coming through who have the x factor...explosive carrying etc.

Lots to look forward to ...IF the coaches get it right.

Zac Guildford is playing in GRR with Kagifa Samoa.

Leicester talking to AWJ according to the Bristol Post. Apparently with no offers forthcoming from Welsh regions right now he may be quite cheap too.

Well if you’re planning on playing him every game he won’t last long. He has a hell of a lot of Ospreys and Wales caps but we’ve limited his playing time in the last two seasons.

Thornton also joins Blues permanently after being on loan there. Decent player but needs to improve and add 5-10kg to his frame. Ospreys should lose 3 locks to team Wales and possibly AWJ permanently, why aren’t they signing any?

LondonTiger wrote:KC,

Having come into contact with him at charity dinner and a coaching conference I have a little disquiet about him being able to settle within the area.

Fair enough, LT. He's meant to be a highly passionate and sometimes abrasive character but also has a good reputation as a young coach. He's great friends with POC so I wonder if the two of them will link up somewhere. POC coaching forwards and lineout, Flannery coaching scrum, defence and ruck work perhaps.

LondonTiger wrote:Leicester talking to AWJ according to the Bristol Post. Apparently with no offers forthcoming from Welsh regions right now he may be quite cheap too.

For the right price AWJ would be great for Tigers. They are hugely lacking in leadership, particularly in the pack currently. He'd set standards and is also very strong at set-piece.

With Lavanini, Spencer, Green and Wells in contract he could be rotated.

I'm not sure where Tigers will find cap space for even a massively reduced AWJ wage though.

mikey_dragon wrote:Well if you’re planning on playing him every game he won’t last long. He has a hell of a lot of Ospreys and Wales caps but we’ve limited his playing time in the last two seasons.

Tigers have some very good young locks on the way through and AWJ would be a very good mentor for them. Also with Spencer and Lavanini we wouldn't need him to start every game and maybe he wouldn't be first choice if injuries and so on are taking their toll. As Carlos says we need some more leadership in the pack because at the moment it's all coming from the front row and abrasive characters are a theme of our forward recruitment so far.

For the right price he'd be what we need and I get the idea that Tigers have earmarked some funds for a veteran lock on a short term deal to help guide through Jordan, Martin and maybe Manz.

At this stage in his career, I would be amazed if AWJ was not considering a move away from Ospreys to cash in and improve the pension fund. He may well fancy it for rugby reasons as well, the chance to play in a different league and at a serious rugby club (and I am not putting Ospreys down here, but there is no doubt that Leicester have the pedigree even if they have been a little lack lustre in recent years)

A lot may depend on what his thoughts are regarding continuing his international career. If he plans to play on for Wales, maybe with the view of one more Lions tour, then he would definitely be better staying in Wales where he would be better managed. If he feels that the WC is going to be his swan song though, then a couple more years for the pension fund may be the best move for him.

BigGee wrote:At this stage in his career, I would be amazed if AWJ was not considering a move away from Ospreys to cash in and improve the pension fund. He may well fancy it for rugby reasons as well, the chance to play in a different league and at a serious rugby club (and I am not putting Ospreys down here, but there is no doubt that Leicester have the pedigree even if they have been a little lack lustre in recent years)

A lot may depend on what his thoughts are regarding continuing his international career. If he plans to play on for Wales, maybe with the view of one more Lions tour, then he would definitely be better staying in Wales where he would be better managed. If he feels that the WC is going to be his swan song though, then a couple more years for the pension fund may be the best move for him.

I suspect there'll be bigger offers than Tigers if he wants to top up the pension fund. Neither marquee spot is available and we have signed like for like signings for most of our first team leavers. It might be a more happy medium for him though as stated above he will have plenty of competition for the starting shirt so won't have to play every week. It might even be part of his contract if he's got an eye on the Lions tour, get decent money but have contracted rest periods to lengthen his career.

There are not many big money deals being done at the moment, especially for players who are the wrong side of 30 and going to RWC. English clubs are mostly already near the cap, French unwilling to splash on players they will not see until December and may arrive injured, while Celtic nations looking to cut wage bills.

Kearney accepted a very cut price offer as nothing else was currently on the table (while SOB was offered about 100k euro to stay in Ireland, his agent did an amazing deal with LI). That AWJ has had no offer from any Welsh region is symptomatic of this. Perhaps a short term contract in England before heading to a big deal elsewhere?

LondonTiger wrote:There are not many big money deals being done at the moment, especially for players who are the wrong side of 30 and going to RWC. English clubs are mostly already near the cap, French unwilling to splash on players they will not see until December and may arrive injured, while Celtic nations looking to cut wage bills.

Kearney accepted a very cut price offer as nothing else was currently on the table (while SOB was offered about 100k euro to stay in Ireland, his agent did an amazing deal with LI). That AWJ has had no offer from any Welsh region is symptomatic of this. Perhaps a short term contract in England before heading to a big deal elsewhere?

The Japanese Top League 2019/20 season will only run from January to May 2020 due to scheduling conflicts with the RWC. So if players are wanting a quicker cash in after the RWC that would be their first stop you'd presume.

Retallick is rumoured to be planning a sabbatical from NZRU duties to do just that with the Kobe Steelers.

Tigers were rumoured to be targeting Donnacha Ryan recently so perhaps there is cap set aside for an experience lock. Lavanini will miss a lot of the season after all.

My next concern with International duty will be Taufua potentially playing for Samoa if not capped by the ABs. Not that I wouldn't want to see Taufua playing Int rugby, he's a fabulous player, but it would be a big blow to Tigers back row balance to lose him for chunks of the season.

Tigers do have a number of talented young flankers. If Denton and Taufua disappear for international duty it will give them opportunities to slot alongside Thompson and Liebenburg, maybe Kalamafoni as well as he isn't always selected.

Increasing number of Super Rugby players using the Japanese League as a salary top up as they can move more easily between the leagues and not have to permanently leave home.

Has Liebenberg been confirmed?

LondonTiger wrote:Has Liebenberg been confirmed?

Unofficially. I think the SA media are reporting it as done. I suspect he doesn't want to announce it yet in case it stops the Boks selecting him before he goes.

TRP (Fissler) this morning going with:

Kibirige to Wasps being announced tomorrow
LI trying to sign Mark Wilson as a SOB replacement
Bristol in for AWJ
Toby Booth a possibility for Leicester

Would love Wilson at LI, but not sure whether I heard relegation clauses needed to already have been activated by now. Would be less keen on a loan.

Toby Booth well that's just great... the board are pushing the boat out there.

I suspect Kibirige is the one who has activated the release clause and Mark Wilson just wants a one year loan deal.

Article suggests a permanent signing rather than a loan, hence the question.

Guessing a loan deal to Sale more likely.

I guess we shall see

No disrespect to Irish but I would have thought Wilson would have preferred not to be a relegation dog fight again. I know it's no certainty that this will happen, but I would guess they are early favourites for the drop with Worcester? May be completely wrong on this mind.

Sale normally flirt with the top 6 and have recruited well this year, I would have guessed he'd have went there if there is an offer the table that is?

Yep, LI should start as favourites for the drop (or joint with Worcester). In theory any deal he signs could be a de facto loan as I'm sure it would have a relegation clause attached.

That said Sale would certainly be the more attractive option from a location and performance point of view.

Sgt_Pooly wrote:No disrespect to Irish but I would have thought Wilson would have preferred not to be a relegation dog fight again. I know it's no certainty that this will happen, but I would guess they are early favourites for the drop with Worcester? May be completely wrong on this mind.

Sale normally flirt with the top 6 and have recruited well this year, I would have guessed he'd have went there if there is an offer the table that is?

I wonder if Wilson is waiting to see what happens with Denton at Tigers. If he's forced to retire then that could be a good move for Wilson either short term or permanent. If LI are waiting on SOB news then Wilson can play the waiting game. He's not going to be joining up with either club until post RWC anyway.

Wilson to Tigers? So he can get relegated two years in a row?

I thought a loan move to Sale was a done deal.

It's more interesting to see if Mark goes on loan or permanent.

We have a raft of kids coming through in the back row..and if they get blooded in the championship next season along side Calum Chick, Captain Will Welch and Gary Graham...maybe Dean can afford to let Mark Wilson go??

LondonTiger wrote:Wilson to Tigers? So he can get relegated two years in a row?

I thought a loan move to Sale was a done deal.

Haha...just what I thinking when I seen Sam's comment. You'd like to think Tigers would be a little bit more competitive this season. Wilson would be an excellent addition, but would upset the balance a little? You seem to be quite full at 6 from the outside.

There's a rumour I am going to be transferred to the spare room unless I miraculously stop snoring entirely in the next 24 hours.

Sgt_Pooly wrote:

LondonTiger wrote:Wilson to Tigers? So he can get relegated two years in a row?

I thought a loan move to Sale was a done deal.

Haha...just what I thinking when I seen Sam's comment. You'd like to think Tigers would be a little bit more competitive this season. Wilson would be an excellent addition, but would upset the balance a little? You seem to be quite full at 6 from the outside.

Only likely if Denton was to retire. Currently that is still a little up in the air. That would free up some space at 6/8 and in the cap.

I think Wilson would be an excellent addition to most squads in the league.

Can play the whole back row and covers lock.

As i said...regardless of where he goes, ill be curious to see if his move will be a permanent one or a season loan....if he moves at all?

Bristol are reportedly trying to prise Alun Wyn Jones away from Welsh rugby and into the Gallagher Premiership.

LordDowlais wrote:Bristol are reportedly trying to prise Alun Wyn Jones away from Welsh rugby and into the Gallagher Premiership.

Interesting interpretation on a situation that has been covered earlier. Currently AWJ has a contract with WRU till end of RWC. No region has made him an offer for next season, and if stories are to be believed even been willing to open discussions. AWJ (or probably his agent) has had discussions with a number of parties including Bath, Bristol and Leicester. The money on offer is a lot less than his current contract as most teams are close to filling their squads, but if he gets no offer in Wales a reduced offer elsewhere will be his only option. French clubs are apparently waiting to see if he comes out of RWC fully fit. If he decides to retire from international rugby I suspect (as suggested above) that Japan would be an attractive proposition.

As expected, Wasps have confirmed the signing of Zach Kibirige from Falcons:

https://www.wasps.co.uk/news/wasps-scoop-signing-of-newcastle-wing-kibirige/

Liking the look of our back line options, especially on the outside, for next season now.

Also: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_hdyrkjO_I

V|ery sad to see Zach going but i cant blame him. Not sure what dean has been playing at...he has barely played the lad.

LondonTiger wrote:

LordDowlais wrote:Bristol are reportedly trying to prise Alun Wyn Jones away from Welsh rugby and into the Gallagher Premiership.

Interesting interpretation on a situation that has been covered earlier. Currently AWJ has a contract with WRU till end of RWC. No region has made him an offer for next season, and if stories are to be believed even been willing to open discussions. AWJ (or probably his agent) has had discussions with a number of parties including Bath, Bristol and Leicester. The money on offer is a lot less than his current contract as most teams are close to filling their squads, but if he gets no offer in Wales a reduced offer elsewhere will be his only option. French clubs are apparently waiting to see if he comes out of RWC fully fit. If he decides to retire from international rugby I suspect (as suggested above) that Japan would be an attractive proposition.

If/When he retires from international rugby after the RWC, perhaps his banding will change and he might get offers from Scarlets (best funded) or Ospreys too? I doubt it, but I can understand the reluctance to offer him a contract yet. Ospreys are pretty well stocked at lock, with two players that already might be bigger earners due to the banding (Beard and Davies).

While on one hand it feels like rather callous behaviour towards AWJ, it is understandable.

Well yeah, it is a shame he isn’t being looked after. Can’t be nice for him, when you could see his displeasure after the Scotland game and he seemingly still hasn’t got his future sorted.

Not sure if its been mentioned yet - Sean Long joins coaching staff at Quins.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/48581640

I remember watching him as a player - but no idea how he is as a coach.

And Catrakilis is leaving Quins

propdavid_london wrote:And Catrakilis is leaving Quins

He'll have a lump in his throat as he looks back on his time at Quins...

Average journeyman available whilst we have two excellent young prospects. Good odds he'll be at Tigers next season then.

formerly known as Sam wrote:

propdavid_london wrote:And Catrakilis is leaving Quins

He'll have a lump in his throat as he looks back on his time at Quins...

Average journeyman available whilst we have two excellent young prospects. Good odds he'll be at Tigers next season then.

Think I read he had signed for the Kings.

LondonTiger wrote:

formerly known as Sam wrote:

propdavid_london wrote:And Catrakilis is leaving Quins

He'll have a lump in his throat as he looks back on his time at Quins...

Average journeyman available whilst we have two excellent young prospects. Good odds he'll be at Tigers next season then.

Think I read he had signed for the Kings.

Yeah confirmed he's gone to the Kings.

Luke Wallace confirmed as joining Coventry Rugby. Presumably there's a release clause in case a prem club comes calling.