15 for 10: Gloucester Rugby - an all-decade XV
Having previously profiled south-west rivals Bath, Bristol Bears and Exeter Chiefs, 15 for 10 now moves on to Gloucester and attempts to pick an all-decade team for the Cherry and Whites.
Similar to Bath, Gloucester’s fortunes have waxed and waned during the 2010’s, rather than more consistent upward trajectory of Exeter, though there is plenty of competition for spots here, not least so in a stacked array of back row options.
Gloucester’s stock has been on the rise since Johan Ackermann’s arrival, however, and one or two of the newer faces benefit as a result of last season’s march up the table. Check out the whole XV below.
- Olly Morgan
Jason Woodward has pushed hard for this spot since arriving from Bristol, although Morgan was also an excellent player for the club. Injuries brought a premature end to his career and denied him the number of England caps his ability surely demanded, but that did not stop him finishing his career with a flourish earlier in this decade.
Continue reading below…
Watch: Crusaders player slammed for racist comment
- Charlie Sharples
Just the 264 appearance and 91 tries to date for Sharples, who is still more than capable of turning a defence inside out with his speed and footwork. He has been one of the greatest servants to Gloucester during the professional era and he is currently in the process of handing the baton over to Ollie Thorley, a man who will likely feature prominently in the XV of the 2020’s.
- Billy Twelvetrees
It is with a heavy heart that we do not select Henry Trinder here, with the outside centre having lit up the Gallagher Premiership over a number of years. When fit, he has been amongst the best in the competition, and we have had to weigh up those injury issues versus the durability and consistency that Twelvetrees has brought to the club. Either would be fitting candidates for this spot.
- Mark Atkinson
Mike Tindall was still making an impact earlier in the decade and James Hook’s arrival from Wales was celebrated, but neither have had the long-term impact of Atkinson, with his chemistry with Twelvetrees and Danny Cipriani proving particularly vital to Gloucester’s rise up the table. In an age of secondary fly-halves at inside centre, Atkinson has impressed as a player capable of getting over the gain-line and playing in his teammates behind it.
- James Simpson-Daniel
Perhaps no player in the professional era has embodied the Cherry and White quite as much as Simpson-Daniel. Internationally, his career is always regarded as a bit of a “what if”, though his contributions to Gloucester go beyond simple numbers. His last four years at the club came in the 2010’s and his impact was still such that he sees off another stalwart of the club, Jonny May. ‘Sinbad’, as he was affectionately known by the Kingsholm faithful, is a player truly deserving of the accolade of club legend.
https://twitter.com/RugbyPass/status/1202209090849644545?s=20
- Danny Cipriani
From a longevity standpoint, there is a case to be made for Freddie Burns and he is due an honourable mention, although Gloucester’s chances of winning a title have not looked better in this last decade than when Cipriani has been at fly-half. The former Wasps playmaker has added an attacking edge at the club and will be key this season if they are to make the most of Saracens’ points deduction and compete for the Premiership.
- Willie Heinz
If there is one thing Gloucester have not lacked for over the last 10 years, it’s scrum-halves. Rory Lawson, Jimmy Cowan, Greig Laidlaw and Dan Robson have all had their moments in Cherry and White, but it is Heinz who has quietly outlasted them and become an integral piece in the Gloucester jigsaw.
- Nick Wood
Another bona fide stalwart of the club, Wood clocked up over 260 appearances on the loosehead for a club that has a tradition of developing uncompromising and tough as nails props. In a decade where Gloucester have chopped and changed in the front row, Wood was a constant and reliable operator for the club.
- Richard Hibbard
Brought in as part of the Guinness PRO14 shopping spree that David Humphreys initially went on in his role of Director of Rugby in order to bring the title to Kingsholm, Hibbard went on to make 100 appearances for the club over a four-year spell. Although that wave of high profile PRO14 recruitment didn’t bring the desired results on the pitch, Hibbard did distinguish himself with his commitment to the jersey and the physicality of his play.
https://twitter.com/RugbyPass/status/1202278972404510720?s=20
- John Afoa
Afoa’s stint at the club lined up completely with Hibbard’s and despite the fact that the real second wind of his career seems to currently be going on at Bristol, the Kiwi gave Gloucester some much-needed set-piece stability. His full influence could be yet to be seen, too, as the club push through young tightheads like Ciaran Knight and Jack Bartlett, both of whom will have spent time learning from Afoa.
- Ed Slater
Slater’s move to Gloucester after having spent the bulk of his career at Leicester Tigers mirrors that of Jim Hamilton, another player worthy of mention in this side. Slater’s arrival helped eradicate a soft underbelly which seemed to plague Gloucester in previous seasons, whilst his move to evolve his game and become a more mobile player certainly seems to have paid off for the West Country side.
- Tom Savage
There is no shortage of options here, with Alex Brown having ended his career this past decade, Jeremy Thrush and Mariano Galarza having brought international quality, and Franco Mostert one who will without doubt stamp his authority moving forward. That said, Savage gave eight years of his life to Gloucester before moving to Japan this year, and though his name is not as high profile as some of those others, his contribution to the club on the pitch over that period outweighs them all.
- Jake Polledri
Lewis Ludlow, Peter Buxton and Ross Moriarty were all considerations here, though it seems as though Polledri is turning in man of the match-type performances on a weekly basis. The flanker seems well on his way to become a firm fan favourite at Kingsholm, not to mention establishing himself as a 1st XV player in what is arguably Gloucester’s strongest back row group in many, many years.
https://twitter.com/RugbyPass/status/1202265828663709699?s=20
- Andy Hazell
From a talent perspective, you could argue Jaco Kriel or Matt Kvesic, whilst from a durability and longevity standpoint, you’d struggle to find a better option than Akapusi Qera. Hazell combines those two elements and though he straddled two decades, he still had plenty to give in this one. If Kriel can stay fit, he should feature in the 2020’s XV, though this spot belongs to Hazell for his contributions over the past 10 years.
- Ben Morgan
Another player who deserves mention alongside the Simpson-Daniels and Woods of this XV, as a true hero to the fans of the club. His performances on the pitch have matched up with that standing, too, as he has moulded himself into an international-calibre No 8 and a player that is always capable of getting Gloucester moving forward. There are honourable mentions for Sione Kalamafoni and Luke Narraway, although this spot was always going to go to Morgan.
Watch: Rugby Australia have reached a settlement with Israel Folau
Comments on RugbyPass
The greatest Springbok coach of all time is entirely on the money. Rassie and Jacques have given the south african public a great few years, but the success of the springbok selection policy will need to be judged in light of what comes next. The poor condition that the provincial system is currently in doesn’t bode well for the next few years of international rugby, and the insane 2026 schedule that the Boks have lined up could also really harm both provincial and international consistency.
15 Go to commentsJake White is a brilliant coach and a master in the press. This is another masterclass in media relations and PR but its also a very narrow view with arguments that dont always hold water. White wants his team to win, he wants the best players in SA and wants his team competitive. You however have to face up to the reality of a poor exchange rate and big clubs with big budgets. SA Rugby cant compete and unless it can find more money SA players will keep leaving regardless of Springbok eligibility and this happened in 2015 - 2017. Also rugby is not cricket. Cricket has 3 formats and T20 cricket is where the money is at. When it comes to club vs country the IPL is king but that wont happen because the international calendar does not clash with the club calendar in rugby. So the argument about rugby going down the same path as cricket is really a non-starter
15 Go to commentsNZ rugby seem not to have learnt anything from professional rugby. Super rugby was dying and SA left before they died with the competition. SA rugby did a u turn on their approach to international players playing overseas and such players are now selected for Bok teams. As much as each country would love to retain their players playing in local competitions, this is the way the world is evolving my friends. Move with it or stay 20 years behind the times. One more thing. NZ rugby hierarchy think they are the big cheese. Take a more humble approach guys. You do not seem to have your players best interests at heart.
3 Go to commentsBeaches? In Cardiff? Where?
1 Go to commentsHe is right , the Crusaders will be a threat. Scott Barrett, ( particularly), Fergus Burke , Codie Taylor, ( from sabbatical) etc due back soon for the Crusaders. There are others like Zach Gallagher too. People can right the Crusaders off, Top 8 , here we come !!
1 Go to commentsWe will always struggle for money to match the other sides but the least the WRU can do is invest properly in Welsh rugby. Too much has been squandered on vanity projects like the hotel and roof walk amongst others which will never see a massive return. Hanging the 4 pro sides out to dry over the last decade is now coming back to bite the WRU financially as well as on the pitch. You reap what you sow.
1 Go to commentsWhat do you get if you cross a doctor with a fish? A plastic sturgeon
14 Go to commentsWhat happened to feleti Kaitu’u? Hasnt played in a while right?
1 Go to commentsGregor I just can’t agree with you. You are trying to find something that just isn’t there. Jordie Barrett has signed until 2028. By the end of that he would have spent probably 11-12 years on Super Rugby and you say he can’t possibly have one season playing somewhere else. It is absurd. What about this scenario, the NZR play hard ball and he decides to leave and play overseas. How would that affect the competition. There seems to be an agenda by certain journalists to push certain agendas and don’t like it when it’s not to their liking. I fully support the NZR on this. Gregor needs to get a life.
3 Go to commentsHope he stays as believe he can do a great job.
1 Go to commentsMake what step up? Manie has a World Cup winner’s medal around his neck and changed the way the Springboks can play. He doesn’t have anything to prove to anyone. The win record of the Boks with him in the team is tremendous. Sacha can be wonderful and I hope he has a very succesful Bok career, but comparing him to Manie in terms of the next Bok flyhalf is very strange. Manie is the incumbent (not the next) and doing pretty incredibly.
1 Go to comments00 😍 U
1 Go to commentsSabbaticals have helped keep NZ’s very best talent in the country on long term deals - this fact has been left out of this article. Much like the articles calling to allow overseas players to be selected, yet can only name one player currently not signed to NZR who would be selected for the ABs. And in the entire history of NZ players leaving to play overseas, literally only 4 or 5 have left in their prime as current ABs. (Piatau, Evans, Hayman, Mo’unga,?) Yes Carter got an injury while playing in France 16 years ago, but he also got a tournament ending injury at the 2011 World Cup while taking mid-week practice kicks at goal. Maybe Jordie gets a season-ending injury while playing in Ireland, maybe he gets one next week against the Brumbies. NZR have many shortcomings, but keeping the very best players in the country and/or available for ABs selection is not one of them. Likewise for workload management - players missing 2 games out of 14 is hardly a big deal in the grand scheme of things. Again let’s use some facts - did it stop the Crusaders winning SR so many times consecutively when during any given week they would be missing 2 of their best players? The whole idea of the sabbatical is to reward your best players who are willing to sign very long term deals with some time to do whatever they want. They are not handed out willy-nilly, and at nowhere near the levels that would somehow devalue Super Rugby. In this particular example JB is locked in with NZR for what will probably (hopefully) be the best years of his career, hard to imagine him not sticking around for a couple more after for a Lions tour and one more world cup. He has the potential to become the most capped AB of all time. A much better outcome than him leaving NZ for a minimum of 3 years at the age of 27, unlikely to ever play for the ABs again, which would be the likely alternative.
3 Go to commentsJake White talks more sense than anything I've read in the last 5 years. Hope someone's listening.
15 Go to commentsThe Springboks tried going down the road of only picking home-based players and it was an unmitigated disaster in 2016 and 2017. Picking overseas-based players has been one of the main reason the Boks have done so well since 2018, not only because of the quality Rassie could call on, but because of the knowledge and experience those players brought into camp from England, France and Japan. With some of the big names playing abroad it also gave younger players in SA the chance to break through at franchise level. Would we have seen the emergence of a Ruan Nortje if RG and Lood were still at the Bulls? Not so sure. I understand why Jake would want to block players leaving since his job depends on good results but it’s an approach that would take Bok rugby back to the bad old days and no South African wants to see that.
15 Go to commentsExeter were thumped by 38 points. And they only had to hop on a train.
39 Go to commentsI am De Groot.
1 Go to commentsHad hoped you might write an article on this game, Nick. It’s a good one. Things have not gone as smoothly for ROG since beating Leinster last year at the Aviva in the CC final. LAR had the Top 14 Final won till Raymond Rhule missed a simple tackle on the excellent Ntamack, and Toulouse reaped the rewards of just staying in the fight till the death. Then the disruption of the RWC this season. LAR have not handled that well, but they were not alone, and we saw Pau heading the Top 14 table at one stage early season. I would think one of the reasons for the poor showing would have to be that the younger players coming through, and the more mature amongst the group outside the top 25/30, are not as strong as would be hoped for. I note that Romain Sazy retired at the end of last season. He had been with LAR since 2010, and was thus one of their foundation players when they were promoted to Top 14. Records show he ended up with 336 games played with LAR. That is some experience, some rock in the team. He has been replaced for the most part by Ultan Dillane. At 30, Dillane is not young, but given the chances, he may be a fair enough replacement for Sazy. But that won’be for more than a few years. I honestly know little of the pathways into the LAR setup from within France. I did read somewhere a couple of years ago that on the way up to Top 14, the club very successfully picked up players from the academies of other French teams who were not offered places by those teams. These guys were often great signings…can’t find the article right now, so can’t name any….but the Tadgh Beirne type players. So all in all, it will be interesting to see where the replacements for all the older players come from. Only Lleyd’s and Rhule from SA currently, both backs. So maybe a few SA forwards ?? By contrast, Leinster have a pretty clear line of good players coming through in the majority of positions. Props maybe a weak spot ? And they are very fleet footed and shrewd in appointing very good coaches. Or maybe it is also true that very good coaches do very well in the Leinster setup. So, Nick, I would fully concurr that “On the evidence of Saturday’s semi-final between the two clubs, the rebuild in the Bay of Biscay is going to take longer than it is on the east coast of Ireland”
11 Go to commentsWhat was the excuse for the other knockout blowouts then? Does the result not prove the Saints were just so much better? Wise call to put your eggs in one basket when you’ve got 2 comps simultaneously finishing.
39 Go to commentsReally hope Kuruvoli and his partner rock the Canes.
1 Go to comments