Gallagher Premiership 2018/19: Academy Intakes
Up and down the Gallagher Premiership, players are returning to their clubs to begin to arduous process of pre-season, where they will be joined in a few weeks by their international colleagues, all of whom are still enjoying a much-needed off-season.
With all but one club having confirmed their senior academy intakes for the 2018/19 season, we round-up the fresh faces that will be appearing in their first pre-seasons as professional athletes.
Stay tuned to RugbyPass over the coming weeks for a closer look at some of the standout players in these groups.
Bath – Will Butt, Olly Cattell, Tom de Glanville, Sam Elrick, Simon Elrick, Ethan Hutt and Tom Jeanes
The productivity of Bath’s academy up front has not diminished this season, with Sam Elrick (hooker), Simon Elrick (tighthead), Cattell and Jeanes (both lock) adding to the club’s options in the tight five.
At fly-half, de Glanville, the son of former Bath and England star Phil de Glanville, leads the way among the backs, with Butt (centre) and Hutt (wing) also filling positions of need for Bath, who have one of the smallest squads in the Premiership, something which is particularly noticeable in the back line.
Bristol Bears – Will Capon and Charlie Powell
Bristol have taken a slightly different tact this season, handing out full professional terms to only Capon (hooker) and Powell (centre), with a few others retained on apprenticeship or dual deals with their universities. It’s a system like the one Pat Lam had at Connacht and makes the most of a local university playing in the BUCS Super Rugby competition.
The three additions to this ‘Junior Academy’ are Nathan Chamberlain (fly-half), who will combine his playing duties with study at Hartpury, Charlie Brabham (loosehead) and Sam Cappaert (utility back).
Exeter Chiefs – Richard Capstick, Flynn Elworthy, Barrie Karea, Sam Maunder, Joe Parker-Cook, Alfie Petch, Danny Southworth, Cory Teague and Rus Tuima
The Devonians have gone big this season with their intake from their junior academy, particularly in the pack, helping them create an off-the-salary-cap squad depth for the coming seasons.
Petch (tighthead), Parker-Cook (lock), Southworth (loosehead) and Teague (lock) all bolster the tight five, whilst the U18 starting back-row of Elworthy, Capstick and Tuima have all been contracted.
In the backs, Maunder (scrum-half) joins his older brother Jack in the battle for the nine jersey at the club and Karrea (wing) will add to the options out wide.
Gloucester – Olly Adkins, Jack Bartlett, Reece Dunn, Ewan Fenley, Alex Morgan, Jacob Morris, Jack Reeves, Tom Stanton and Cameron Terry
The Cherry and Whites have matched the nine signings of Exeter with nine of their own, although with a bit more of a focus on back line talents.
Dunn (full-back) is an exciting broken-field runner, Morgan and Morris (both wings) add depth to the back-three and Reeves (centre) joins the club’s stock of midfielders. Stanton, who can play both in the centres and on the wing, and Fenley (scrum-half) complete the cadre of backs.
Big props have been added in the form of Adkins (loosehead) and Bartlett (tighthead), following in the footsteps of Alex Seville and Ciaran Knight, whilst Terry (back-row) rounds out Gloucester’s class of 2018.
Harlequins – Harry Barlow, George Hammond, Luke James, Jack Kenningham, Jack Musk, Kieran Sassone and Hugh Tizard
Harlequins have moved to address the club’s need at lock with contracts handed out to Hammond and Tizard, whilst Sassone (tighthead), James, Kenningham (both back-row) and Musk (hooker) round out the additions up front, with the latter a member of the England 7s team at the Youth Commonwealth Games last year.
Another member of that squad was Barlow (utility back), who is the sole addition in the back line for Quins this year, with an impressive group of U17s ready to come to the fore next season.
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Leicester Tigers – Andre Dunn*, Taylor Gough, Cameron Jordan, Henri Lavin, Keston Lines and Thom Smith
Tigers are another team, like Quins, sitting on a very impressive U17 group and that may account for their slightly smaller intake, despite lifting the U18s title earlier this year.
An entire back-row has been contracted in the form of Gough, Lavin and Smith, Jordan (lock) is a player with a bright future and Lines (loosehead) will hope to live up to the lofty expectations of any Leicester prop.
Dunn (centre) is not officially a part of this group just yet, due to an immigration issue, but once that is cleared up he will join the team and could well be a player to keep an eye on in the seniors as soon as this coming season.
Newcastle Falcons – Rob Farrar, Josh Hodge, Tom Marshall, Will Montgomery, Cameron Nordli Kelemeti and Morgan Passman
Perhaps the most gifted intake, individually, Newcastle have had in the last 10 years, with all six having Premiership potential and a few who could be eyeing up England caps if they continue to develop.
Montgomery (lock), Farrar and Marshall (both back-row) come in up front and Nordli Kelemeti (scrum-half), Hodge (full-back) and Passman (wing) arrive in the backs, giving Dean Richards a balanced bolstering of his senior squad, two or three of whom could test his patient selection attitude towards younger players.
Northampton Saints – Alex Coles, Samson Ma’asi, Ollie Sleightholme, Connor Tupai and Joe Wallace
A smaller selection from Saints, but one which boasts a couple of players who could push Chris Boyd’s hand early and make themselves foundation pieces in his rebuild of the East Midlands side.
Coles (lock), Ma’asi (hooker) and Wallace (back-row) have all impressed in the U18s, with Coles a possible long-term replacement for the recently retired Christian Day, whilst Sleightholme (wing) and Tupai (scrum-half) make up the backs. Tupai is transitioning to the half-backs from the centres and is the son of Bedford Blues legend Paul Tupai.
Sale Sharks – Ciaran Booth, Conor Doherty, Sam Dugdale, Cameron Redpath, Bevan Rodd and Kieran Wilkinson
This intake has not been publicly confirmed by the club as of yet, but these are the six players that the club extended bursaries to last season as U18s, with the intent of signing them to professional terms when they left school this year. There is a good chance that further players will have been added, despite not yet being announced.
Doherty (utility back), Wilkinson (fly-half) and Redpath (centre) make up the backs, with Redpath the marquee name here and someone who can play his way into the Sale senior squad this coming season.
Up front, Booth and Dugdale (both back-row) have been added, as well as Rodd (loosehead), who is one of the more exciting props with ball-in-hand you’re likely to see.
Saracens
Unfortunately, Saracens haven’t yet publicly announced their intake and are keeping it firmly under wraps until they do.
Wasps – Cameron Anderson, Taju Atta, Kieran Curran, Will Simonds and Sam Spink
The strength of this class is what it can do with ball-in-hand and in faster tempo games. Thankfully, that plays perfectly into Wasps’ wheelhouse.
Atta (wing), Simonds (full-back), Anderson and Spink (both centres) are all quick, skilful and eager to play what’s in front of them, something which hopefully helps them break into a Wasps side that has struggled to progress through too many academy players in recent seasons.
Curran (back-row) is the lone addition in the forwards, although current U17 Alfie Barbeary is a player worth taking note of and one who we could see feature in senior games next season, despite still being at school.
Worcester Warriors – Alex Bartley, Tom Fawcett and Ollie Lawrence
Another smaller selection, although all three players boast significant promise, not least so Lawrence (centre), who we featured last year.
Lawrence’s inclusion in England training squads and try-scoring performances in the Anglo-Welsh Cup should mean that people are quite familiar with his talents, but Bartley (wing) and Fawcett (back-row) are more than good enough to play their ways out of his shadow at Worcester.
Callum Morris (scrum-half), of the Dragons junior academy, and Luke Scully (fly-half), from Neath Port Talbot College, have also been contracted by Warriors, with the pair of Wales U18s likely encouraged to move by Wales U20s’ recent acceptance to select English-based players.
Comments on RugbyPass
Wow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
1 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
14 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
1 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to commentsWhat a player! Not long until he’s in the England side, surely?
2 Go to commentsHe seems to have the same aura as Marcus Smith - by which I mean he’s consistently judged as if he’s several years younger than he actually is. Mngomezulu has played 24 times for the Stormers. When Pollard was his age he had played 24 times for South Africa! He has more time to develop, but he has also had time to do some developing already, and he hasn’t demonstrated nearly as much talent in that time as one would expect. If he is a generational talent, then it must be a pretty poor generation.
4 Go to commentsThe 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.
16 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
16 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.
4 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.
16 Go to comments