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Luke Cowan-Dickie inching closer to Exeter exit
With Exeter Chiefs having already extended the contracts of Henry Slade and Jack Nowell, as well as made the marquee addition of Stuart Hogg, it was inevitable there were going to have to be sacrifices elsewhere.
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As the 2018/19 Gallagher Premiership season moves on, it’s beginning to look more and more like Luke Cowan-Dickie could be one of the players heading for the door at Exeter at the end of the season.
The hooker is in the final year of the contract he agreed in 2016 and, unsurprisingly, has been the subject of major interest from elsewhere in the Premiership.
Whilst the 25-year-old could yet agree terms with the Devon club and stay at Sandy Park, the situation has reached the point where it has become more likely that he is set to leave, with a RugbyPass source telling us that Leicester Tigers are the club that are leading the way for the player’s signature.
Leicester are keen to add competition to the international duo of Tom Youngs and Tatafu Polota-Nau and see Cowan-Dickie as the perfect complement to those two more experienced campaigners.
There are not the only club interested, however, with Worcester Warriors having made an impressive financial offer to Cowan-Dickie, one that surpasses that of Leicester’s, with the club from the West Midlands set to lose starting hooker Jack Singleton to Saracens this summer.
That said, RugbyPass understands that Cowan-Dickie’s motivations to move are not purely financial and that he is eager to put himself out of his comfort zone and push for England selection, something which has been made difficult for him in recent years due to the form of both Dylan Hartley and Jamie George.
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Cowan-Dickie has been an influential part of Exeter’s rise in the Premiership over the last five years, but since making his senior England debut in 2015, he has only featured seven times for the national side, with all of those caps coming off the bench.
A fresh start and a new environment could be what pushes him to the next level and allows him to compete with George for the two jersey after the upcoming Rugby World Cup.
Watch: Cowan-Dickie’s international rival and teammate, Dylan Hartley, dissects England’s performance against Australia.
Comments on RugbyPass
Good luck Aussie
10 Go to commentssmith at 9 / mounga 10 / laumape 12 / fainganuku 14
37 Go to commentsBar the injuries, it’s pretty much their top team …
2 Go to commentsDon’t disagree with much of this but it appears you forgot Rodda and Beale, who started at the Force on the weekend.
10 Go to commentsExcept 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.
37 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
37 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
37 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.
37 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. All the Kiwis sticking up for this unprincipled individual because they can't accept justified criticism, he has zero credibility or integrity. 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.
37 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.
37 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.
2 Go to commentsWishing Rosie a speedy recovery
1 Go to commentsObscene that SA haven’t been knocking
1 Go to comments