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Ex-All Black Naholo and Coleman coming back from surgery as London Irish factor Saracens' relegation into their planning
London Irish opted to send former All Blacks wing Waisake Naholo for surgery to help ensure they are truly competitive next season, a tactic that mirrored their earlier decision to also have Wallaby lock Adam Coleman operated on rather than play in the restarted 2019/20 Gallagher Premiership.
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Irish are on a miserable seven-game losing streak and have four matches remaining in the interrupted season. But with Saracens automatically relegated to the Championship, the Exiles have opted to begin preparations for the November start to the 2020/21 season rather than play players at the moment who aren’t 100 per cent.
Assistant Brad Davis, who joined the Irish coaching set-up at the start of the Covid-19 interrupted season, is adamant this strategy will be proved correct when they play out of their new home at the Brentford Community Stadium.
Irish, who host temporary landlords Harlequins at The Stoop on Wednesday, have taken heart from pushing Gloucester hard last weekend before late mistakes consigned them to a 36-23 Kingsholm defeat.
Davis told RugbyPass: “We want to become a great team and a lot of decisions we made in this second block (of games) – with Saracens’ relegation already in place – means these matches are gold dust for us and we are super excited to be going to Brentford.
It wasn't to be on Saturday, but great to see @OHassellcollins add another score to his tally ?
Highlights ? https://t.co/ci96Z01vlw pic.twitter.com/yF0v2snL5S
— London Irish (@LiRFC) September 7, 2020
“We took decisions to let players have operations during these nine games. Adam Coleman had surgery on his shoulder when we were unsure when rugby would start up again. Waisake Naholo had an operation on his knee while in lockdown in New Zealand and we are hopeful those guys will be fit for the start of the new season.
“The players we have brought in like Sean O’Brien, Paddy Jackson, Sekope Kepu and Agustin Creevy have that international winning mentality and can drive the frustration that builds to ensure it never turns into a negative situation.
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“It will spur us on. The beauty of having of our recruitment programme is that we get these players who are influential on and off the field driving the standards we need.
“What happens in the next four games will not define us for next season by any stretch because we are putting a lot of things in place that are going to help the club moving forward. We are not in the game to finish eleventh or tenth, and it would be nice to climb up from ninth.”
The final piece in London Irish’s high profile recruitment drive will arrive in around two weeks when Rob Simmons, the highly experienced Waratahs and Wallaby lock, completes his move to London to join fellow internationals such as O’Brien, Jackson, Nick Phipps, Coleman, Kepu and the recently arrived Creevy, the former Pumas skipper.
“We are hopeful that we will have Rob Simmons here in the next couple of weeks depending on quarantine,” continued Davis. “Losing does build pressure and it’s about seeing in this situation which young players rise to the top and fight their way through adversity.
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“With no relegation there can only be opportunity. While we want to get into the winner’s circle as soon as possible. Through a bit of pain we are going to come out at the right end of the stick. We are gelling effectively and the season has been broken up into two parts. We built up some momentum in the first half and in the second part there are two different squads – pre-lockdown and post-lockdown.
“Our post-lockdown squad is lower in numbers and that provides an opportunity to give our academy players an opportunity. Although it’s frustrating being on the losing side of the ledger in the long term it will hold us in good stead when we are in Brentford.
“We have seen improvements in our games since the restart and we have been right in it at 60 minutes and we need to finish things off.”
'As it stands a lot of guys on June 30 are going to be unemployed' @topsy_ojo talks the brutal reality of contracts, @LiRFC , their new stadium and how he's transitioning to life after the game, with @heagneyl ??https://t.co/PjrB41nuTu
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) June 7, 2020
Comments on RugbyPass
Says much about the player picking this gig over the easier and bigger rewards offered to him in Japan. Also says a lot about the state sanctioned tax benefits the Irish Revenue offers pro rugby players, with their ten highest earning years subject to an additional 40% tax relief and paid as a lump sum, in cash, at retirement. Certainly helps Leinster line up the financial ducks in a row to fund marquee signings like this!!! No other union anywhere in world rugby benefits from this kind of lucrative financial sponsorship from their government…
3 Go to commentsTrue Jordie could earn a lot more in Japan. But by choosing Leinster he’ll be playing with 1 of the best clubs in the world and can win a champions cup and URC…..
6 Go to commentsThanks for that Marshy, noticed you didn't say who is gonna win it. We know who ain't gonna win it - your Crusaders outfit. They've gone from having arguably the best Super Rugby first five ever, to having a clutch of rookies. Hurricanes all the way!
1 Go to commentsGeez you really have to question the NRLs ability to produce players of quality. Its pathetic. Dont the 25mil in Aus produce enough quality womens players. Sad.
1 Go to commentsBulls fan here, and agree 100% with the conclusion (and little else) of this article. SA sides should absolutely f-off from the champs cup until we get fair scheduling, equal support for travel arrangements and home semis. You know, like all the european teams get.
23 Go to commentsI’m yet to see why Grace would be an ABs contender. He’s pedestrian and lacks the dominance required of a top flight 8.
10 Go to commentsGee my Highlanders were terrible. They have gone backwards since the start of the season. The trouble began when we left Millar behind to prep as the 10 against the Brumbies and he was disconnected from the team that came back from Aussie. We rested Patchell for that game and we blew an avalanche of ball in good attacking positions in the 1st half. Against the Rebels we seem to of gone into a pod system with forwards hanging off from the breakdown leaving Fakatava to secure our ball!
78 Go to commentsPot Kettle, the English and French teams have done it for years.
23 Go to commentsHas virtually played every minute of previous games. Back row of Li Lo Willie , Grace and Blackadder would be the 1. Crusaders issue is a very average 1st 5 who cannot run. Kicking in general play is also below par They need to put Yong Kemara in. He must have so.e talent for them to bring him down from Waikato. Hoehepa would struggle to play in so.e club sided
10 Go to commentsI hope this a good thing making all these changes!
2 Go to commentsThe Hurricanes are good, especially with a decent coach now. However, let’s be real, the Crusaders and Chiefs are clearly a good degree weaker without the players they’ve lost overseas now. The Canes lost one player. It’s also why the aussie teams ‘seem’ to be stronger.
9 Go to commentsOr you could develop your own players instead of constantly taking from the SH competition and weakening it in the process? With all the player and financial resources these unions have compared to SH countries you’d think they could manage that, or is weakening the SH comps and their national sides an added bonus? Probably.
3 Go to commentsNot so fast Aaron, we might need you in black yet lol. God knows he’d be a lot less nerve-racking than hot and (very) cold players like Perofeta. It’s really a shame Reuben Love isn’t playing 10, we’ve got enough 15 options.
4 Go to commentsAnd those from the NH still seem to be puzzled (and delighted) why NZ’s depth isn’t what it once was. Over 600 NZ players overseas, that’s insane. This sort of deal is why Super Rugby coaches have admitted they struggle now to find enough quality to fill out their squads.
6 Go to commentsArticle intéressant ! La question devrait régulièrement se poser pour les jeunes français originaires de Nouvelle-Calédonie, Wallis-et-Futuna et de Polynésie entre la Nouvelle-Zélande et la Métropole… Difficile pour la fédération française de rugby de se positionner : soit le choix est fait de dénicher les jeunes talents et de les faire venir très tôt en Métropole, au risque de les déraciner, soit on prend le risque de se les faire “piller” par les All Blacks qui, telle une araignée, essaye de récupérer tous les talents des îles du Pacifique… À la France de se défendre en développant l’aura du XV de France et des clubs français dans ses collectivités d’Outre-mer !
3 Go to commentsWrong bay. He needs to come to the REAL BAY which is Bay Of Plenty and have a crack at making the Chiefs.
3 Go to commentsIs Barrett going play full back??? They already have all the centers…
16 Go to commentsForgive my ignorance, I might not fully understand so would appreciate clarification: Didn’t the Bulls have to fly with three different carriers, paid for by the South African Rugby Union, whilst Edinburgh got a chartered flight sponsored by EPCR? Also, as far as I understand it South African teams don’t yet share in the revenue from the competition and are not allowed to host Semi-finals or Finals at home. Surely if everyone wants South Africans to “take the competition seriously” then they must make South Africans feel welcome, allow them to share in the revenue, and give them the same levels of access as the teams from the other countries. Just a reminder that South Africa has a large and passionate Rugby audience. Just by virtue of our teams being a part of these competitions means that more of us are likely to watch the knockout games, even if our teams haven’t qualified. It would be silly to alienate such a large audience by making them feel unwelcome.
23 Go to commentsFirst of all. This guy is very much behind the curve. All the bleating, whingeing, whining and moaning took place days ago already. Not adding anything to the topic other than more bleating, whingeing, whining and moaning. 🍼 Second of all, not one mention of the fact that South African teams can’t get home semi finals or finals. The tournament was undermined and devalued by the administrators. 🤡 Thirdly, football teams often have to juggle selections in mid week games, premier games, champions league games etc. and will from time to time prioritize certain titles over others. 🐒 And lastly FEK Neil, and anyone else for that matter, for insisting on telling teams how to manage themselves. If they make what is largely a business decision that suits them and doesn’t suit you - tough shite. 💩 It’s not rocket science as to why the Bulls did what they did. If this guy is too slow to figure it out (and is deliberately not mentioning one of the key reasons why) then he isn’t a journalist. He should join the rest of us pundit plebs in comments section. 🥴
23 Go to commentsSo the first door to knock on Rob is Parliament followed by HMRC. The Irish Revenue deliver a 40% tax relief rebate on the HIGHEST EARNING TEN YEARS of every pro Irish rugby players contract earnings at retirement. That goes a long way to both retaining their best talent and freeing up wages for marquee players. Who knows, if that had been in place in the UK, you might not have been able to poach Hoggy and Jonny Gray from Glasgow…!!!
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