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How Danny Cipriani and other Gloucester players reacted to the appointment of new coach

By Ian Cameron
(Photo by Getty Images)

Flyhalf Danny Cipriani was among a number of Gloucester players that took to social media to voice their endorsement of the left-field appointment of George Skivington as the Premiership side’s new head coach.

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RugbyPass revealed earlier this month that Skivington had beaten off over 60 other applicants for the head coach position following the departure of Johan Ackermann. While within the club there’s excitement at the appointment, some sections of Gloucester fanbase have been a little underwhelmed with the relatively low profile signing of a man at the start of his coaching career.  While Skivington has previously been forwards coach at London Irish, and has experience with the Samoan national team, this will be his head coach role at a first-grade club.

Nevertheless, he has received resounding support from his new team online.

Cipriani was one of the first Gloucester players to tweet: “This is the most exciting announcement of a head coach I’ve seen in rugby, foreword thinking. The type of man you build a club around. Very grateful I’ll get to play out my last years under him”.

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Second row Ed Slater, who played alongside Skivington at Leicester Tigers, Tweeted: “I was lucky to play with George for the first 2 years of my career, and he taught me a hell of a lot about the game. It’s great to be able to work with him again and I’m excited for what he will bring for the team and the club.”

Former Gloucester hooker Nick Wood Tweeted: “Great to see a young, exciting English coach given the opportunity. Top teammate, bloke and, no doubt, coach too.”

Commentator Ed Mullins branded it a ‘brave call’, posting: “Gloucester replace Johan Ackermann with London Irish’s George Skivington. A brave call. His first job as a No1, but an outstanding man and a young English coach with bags of promise.”

CEO Lance Bradley, who is ‘taking a break’ from Twitter, commented “George has a great reputation within the game, and is one of the new generation of highly talented young English coaches. He was our clear first choice among the many who applied for the position. He has signed a long-term contract and we look forward to working with him to deliver the vision we have for our Club.”

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Skivington will start in his new position on 3 July 2020.

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Trevor 2 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

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Bull Shark 6 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

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