The UAFC

Bit of a left-field post but wonder whether anyone has heard if 's son Gareth is on the radar. Been SUFTUMing a lot on Twitter lately and seems to follow our results with genuine interest.

As a player that is realistically not going to break into the AB squad, and having already won Super XV with the Chiefs, will he want a new challenge? Plays 10/15, therefore could cover Paddy during the 6n, and prove a back up to Payne at 15 or start at 15 if Payne moves to 13 as has been suggested.

Watch a lot of Super Rugby and rate him highly. Cool head and a lot of talent.

The kid had big aspirations at the blues as a ten. After throwing the toys out with Kirwan he reset his game under Rennie/Smith, dusted himself down & matured as a utility back.
Lot less daring in attack than RR but a great all round player. And a cool goal kicker to boot.
I can't think of any better alternatives in the SH for our backline. It's a real possibility!
The father / son COI is a red herring IMO .

Hi father will be leaving this time next year.

And why wouldn't he take an interest in and support the team his father coaches?

Can't be a good thing playing for your da's side.

big mervyn wrote:Can't be a good thing playing for your da's side.

My two sons would agree with that.....

As snipe said MA will be gone next year.
And lol at the back up comment, he plays 15 (top chiefs point scorer last season) in the best attacking club side in the world, but we can use him as a squad player.

big mervyn wrote:Can't be a good thing playing for your da's side.

Two words: Owen Farrell

shamalicious wrote:

big mervyn wrote:Can't be a good thing playing for your da's side.

Two words: Owen Farrell

i.e. I agree!

Good point re MA leaving. Forgot that in the excitement of starting a thread.

I think calling him a squad player is maybe stretching the point I was trying to make. However, if the players we are looking to recruit aren't world class, whats the point? Yes, he probably wouldn't come here to be behind DC/JP in the pecking order, but then the players that would be happy to do so, aren't worth recruiting. Catch 22

oxford-red wrote:However, if the players we are looking to recruit aren't world class, whats the point?

Lets flip that round. If we can only recruit 4 NIQs what's the point in looking at positions where we already have class?

ColinM wrote:

oxford-red wrote:However, if the players we are looking to recruit aren't world class, whats the point?

Yeh, good point. I'm just a big fan of his and wish our back line had a similar depth as the chiefs.

oxford-red wrote:

ColinM wrote:

oxford-red wrote:However, if the players we are looking to recruit aren't world class, whats the point?

Yeh, good point. I'm just a big fan of his and wish our back line had a similar depth as the chiefs.

Don't forget Stuart Olding will be back next season and is a considerably better player that Gareth Anscombe.
Next season we will have two new options at 10 in iHumph and Sean O'Hagan. We could do with another player at 15 who can cover across the back 3.
Where we need more quality is at prop, but we cannot bring in anything other than IQ there.

For all the depth Leinster had they still got mullered by Toulon.
Squad depth is great for the rabo and will get you only so far in the HEC but what they lacked in the end was individual physical quality up front to take on the best, that the likes of Elsom, Hines and Thorn have provided in the past.

Replacing Muller, Court and Afoa similarly is going to be massive for us.
These guys may not all have done the business week in and out due to injuries etc but in the big games those were the guys that came to the fore in terms of physicality and leadership.

We dont just need replacements we need quality ones but with all the best players in the southern hemisphere likely staying put in a WC year they are like hens teeth to find.

Get the impression that this year was the one we were really building towards as some players inferred it was our best chance.
The next time we really challenge could be about a 3 year project.

Maybe thats why MA was only given a year.

I think any non-French team will struggle to win the European championship going forward. French clubs have so many big game players they are always going to be hard to beat. There are also so few French players in their squads that you cannot expect the traditional sloppy away performances. Big chunk of luck will be needed. Sarries have a chance with their home semifinal, but Munster are really going to struggle in France.