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England's Mark Wilson to go on one-year loan to Premiership club
Sale Sharks have announced the signing on loan of Mark Wilson from Newcastle Falcons for the 2019/20 Gallagher Premiership season.
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Falcons have agreed to release the England back row to the Sharks after the completion of the 2019 World Cup. The Cumbrian-born flanker will then return to his first professional club for the start of the 2020/21 season.
Wilson joined Newcastle in the summer of 2010 and has been a stalwart of the Falcons pack ever since. The 29-year-old flanker has made 224 appearances for his boyhood club and was first called up by England to face the Barbarians in 2015.
Wilson’s consistently impressive performances eventually lead to a long-awaited Test debut in Argentina in 2017. He has since gone on to win 13 caps and will likely head to the World Cup with England in September.
Wilson will start training at Carrington after the completion of the finals in November and will bolster the Sharks already impressive back row options as the club continues its pursuit of a top-four finish in the Gallagher Premiership.
NEW SIGNING | Sale Sharks agree a loan deal with @FalconsRugby and @Mark_wils610! ?
Mark will be representing #YourSharks for the 19/20 #GallagherPrem and will head to Carrington after the #RWC2019! ?
Read more here ? https://t.co/vay5PvMNeI #SharkTime @UKFast pic.twitter.com/ndJR48Ze9S
— Sale Sharks ? (@SaleSharksRugby) July 2, 2019
Sale boss Steve Diamond said: “We’re delighted to secure Mark’s services for the 2019/20 Gallagher Premiership season. It’s going to be a big year for us and it’s not often a current England International becomes available, so we jumped at the chance to loan him from the Falcons when the opportunity arose.
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“We wish Mark good luck in his pre-season training with England and look forward to welcoming him at Carrington after the completion of the World Cup.
“I would also like to wish Newcastle all the best with their season and look forward to hopefully having them back alongside us representing the north in the Gallagher Premiership in the near future.”
Newcastle boss Dean Richards added: “This has not been an easy decision for Mark because he is very loyal to the Falcons, but at the same time we understand he has to think about his England selection.
“Playing Premiership rugby gives him the best possible chance of maintaining his place in the national squad. As disappointing as it is to lose a player of his ability for a season we fully understand Mark’s reasoning in reaching this decision.
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Newcastle Falcons and England back-rower Mark Wilson will spend the 2019-20 season on loan at Sale Sharks. The club wishes Mark and Sale Sharks all the best for the season ahead, and looks forward to his return https://t.co/2tzGjQuxhT pic.twitter.com/IomJLkPGoF
— Newcastle Falcons (@FalconsRugby) July 2, 2019
“Even in his absence we believe we have a squad capable of earning promotion back into the Premiership at the first attempt, without taking anything for granted, after which point we would look forward to welcoming Mark back into the fold.
“I don’t think anyone can question Mark’s loyalty after making 224 appearances for the club and the manner in which he has conducted himself throughout that time. We wish him and Sale all the best for the coming season.”
WATCH: Part one of the two-part RugbyPass documentary on the many adventures that fans can expect to experience in Japan at this year’s World Cup
Comments on RugbyPass
Except for the injured Zach Gallagher this would be Saders best forward pack for the season. Blackadder needs to stay at 7, for all of Christies tackling he is not dominant and offers very little else. McNicholfullback is maybe a good option, Fihaki not really upto it, there was a reason Burke played there last year. Maybe Havilli to 2nd five McLeod to wing. Need a strong winger on 1 side to compliment Reece
1 Go to commentsTo me TJ is clearly the best 9 in the competition right now but he's also a proven player off the bench, there's few playmaking players who can come off the bench as calm and settled as he is, Beauden can, TJ can and I doubt any of the scrumhalves in contention can, if they want to experiment with new 9s I want him on the bench ready to step in if they crumble under the pressure. The Boks put their best front row on the bench, I'd like to see us take a similar approach, the Hurricanes have been doing similar things with players like Kirifi.
33 Go to commentsROG has better chance to win a WC if he starts training and make himself eligible as a player. He won’t make the Ireland squad but I reckon he may get close with Namibia (needs to improve his Afrikaans) or Portugal. Both sides had 1000:1 odds to win the RWC in 2023 which is an improvement on ROG’s odds of winning a RWC as a coach. Unlike Top 14 teams, national teams can’t go shopping and buy the best players - you work with the available talent pool and turn them into world beaters.
2 Go to commentsthat backline nope that backline is terrible why would you have sevu Reece when he’s not even top 5 wingers in the comp why have Blackadder when there’s better players no Scott barret isn’t an automatic the guy is more of a liability than anything why have him there when you have samipeni who’s far far better
33 Go to commentsAh, good to find you Nick. Agree with everything about Cale. So much to like about his game
49 Go to commentsNot too bad. Questions at 6, lock and HB for me. The ABs will be a lot stronger once Jordan and Roigard return. Also, work needs to be made to secure Frizzell back for next season and maybe also Mo’unga; they’re just wasting time playing in japan
33 Go to commentsOn the title, i wonder for many of those people it is a case something like a belief in working smarter, not harder?
1 Go to commentsForget Sotutu. One of those whose top level is Super Rugby. Id take a punt on Wallace Sititi Finau ahead of Glass body Blackadder.
33 Go to commentsI’m a pensioner so I've been around a bit. My opinion of SBW is he is an elite athlete and a great New Zealander and roll model. He has been to the top and knows what he's talking about. To all the negative comments regarding SBW the typical New Zealand way, cut that tall poppy down.
17 Go to commentsI'm not listening to a guy moralise over others when this is the guy who walked out mid season on Canterbury RLFC when he had a contract with them, what a hypocrite. Those praising him are a joke.
17 Go to commentsI’d put Finau at 6 instead of Blackadder but that’s the only change I’d make. Can’t wait to see who Razor picks.
33 Go to commentsTamati Williams, Codie Taylor, and Same Cane? Not sure about Hoskins Sotutu at test level. Wasn’t that impressive last season. Need a balance between experience and talent/youth.
33 Go to commentsInteresting insight. Fantastic athlete, and a genuine human being.
17 Go to commentsThey played at night in Suva last weekend and it’s an afternoon game forecast for 19 degrees in Canberra this weekend. Heat change is a non issue.
1 Go to commentsWishing Rosie a speedy recovery
1 Go to commentsObscene that SA haven’t been knocking
1 Go to commentsChances of Blackadder being injured seem too high to give him serious consideration. ABs loosie combination finally looked good with 2 committed to tackling and clearing rucks in the centre and Ardie roaming. Hoskins/Ardie together would force one of them into where they don’t excel and don’t get to use their talent, or require a change in tactics. If we continue to evolve last years systems I would take Papali’i and Finau at 6 and 7 (conceding that Blackadder will be injured) and Ardie at 8.
33 Go to commentsArdie’s preferred position 7? Where do they get these writers from? I've no idea where he's playing in Japan, but the previous two seasons he wore the 7 jersey exactly twice.
17 Go to commentsNot good to hear Ulster described as “financially troubled”. Did not think it was getting to that level. I would hope the Irish system of spreading players of talent away from Leinster would kick in now. Better to have a Leinster fringe player with Ulster or Connacht, then getting only a few games a season in Dublin. 10, for example, would seem to be a case for spreading the talent. I would not be at all adverse to a SA man coming in as head coach/DR. Ludeke is worth trying. Certainly got a long and impressive coaching career at this level…..149 games in SR, then Japan, 30 years experience. And Ulster’s ledger of successful SA coaches and players is on the positive side. Is talk of Ruan Pienaar interested in coming back as a coach…..could be a good combination with Ludeke. And Pienaar and family would have no settling in to do, one would judge. He loved life in Ulster when there, by all reports.
1 Go to commentsSome thoughts to consider here, Sam. Thanks
2 Go to comments