The 5 most intriguing signings as Premiership rugby gears up for its return
With Gallagher Premiership rugby slated to return next month, we face the unusual scenario of seeing a flood of new signings at each of the clubs before the culmination of the 2019/20 season, something which adds an interesting subplot should Covid-19 not derail the current plans for resumption.
Some teams have been bolstered by additions from abroad, others have seen key contributors leave for rivals and a few have been left so desperately short of players that they are currently scrambling for reinforcements in order to finish the season. It’s fair to say that form before the lockdown could count for very little when rugby does finally return next month.
RugbyPass have taken a look at five of the most intriguing signings made by Premiership clubs in 2020 and analyse what they will bring to their new sides over the next few months and into the 2020/21 campaign.
Ratu Naulago (Bristol Bears)
At this point in time, the levels of expectation and excitement for the arrivals of Kyle Sinckler and Semi Radradra at Ashton Gate could not be higher and their signings have understandably hogged the limelight in the south-west. That said, no one should be sleeping on the impact that Naulago could make at Bristol and how well he fits the style that Pat Lam has the Bears playing.
"Guys were messaging each other on Instagram: 'Like bro, I'm hearing you are getting pay cuts'. This is guys from other English clubs and I'm just like, 'Bro I have no f***in' clue'"
– @LimaSopoaga gives @jimhamilton4 his take on Premiership wage cuts ???https://t.co/YO0eicjFb3
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) July 8, 2020
The Fijian, who serves in the British army, has lit up Super League with Hull FC of late, although he also boasts experience in the 15- and 7-a-side codes. He brings pace and power to the wing and with Bears putting such a premium on their tempo and ability to recycle ball quickly, Naulago is not going to be short of opportunities to test himself in one-on-ones during his stint at the club.
The 29-year-old still has to finish up his commitments in Super League before hopping codes but expect him to make a significant impact once he does arrive in the Premiership.
Josh Hodge (Exeter Chiefs)
If you look at where Exeter have invested their money in recent seasons in terms of giving senior academy contracts to their U18s, it has leant heavily towards bolstering their pack. By snapping up one of English rugby’s brightest young backline talents in Hodge, the club have potentially helped address that imbalance while also maintaining pathways for their own players.
Hodge has been identified by England boss Eddie Jones as a player of particular promise and he already boasts an impressively rounded game in the back three, with counter-attacking, kicking, aerial and defensive skills all present. With Exeter icon Phil Dollman having turned 35 this year and both Stuart Hogg and Jack Nowell frequently away on international duty, Hodge could make a significant impact early in his career at the club.
Whether acting as a playmaker, game manager and second receiving option from full-back, or adding pace and incision to the wing options Exeter can currently call upon, Hodge could swiftly embed himself as a fan favourite in Devon.
Andre Esterhuizen (Harlequins)
The old adage goes that forwards win matches and backs decide by how much. Although still largely true, the addition of Esterhuizen should have Quins fans salivating. While Wilco Louw will be crucial to Paul Gustard’s side’s chances of success, he has his hands full simply filling the void left by the departure of British and Irish Lion Sinckler.
Esterhuizen gives Quins that direct, hard-carrying threat outside of Marcus Smith that the young fly-half has not consistently been able to lean on since his rise to the first XV. The duo of Francis Saili (now at Biarritz) and Paul Lasike had their fair share of injury misfortune since arriving in Surrey and the club will be hoping that Esterhuizen can prove more durable over the coming years.
If the South African centre can provide that ability to get over the gain line and quickly recycle, the likes of Smith, Danny Care and the returning Joe Marchant will find themselves with plenty of favourable match-ups in the subsequent phases.
Not the news some Leicester fans wanted to hear https://t.co/HBa9iPpuFS
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) July 8, 2020
Nemani Nadolo (Leicester Tigers)
Leicester need something. Heck, Leicester need anything at the moment and the departures of high-calibre players such as Manu Tuilagi and Telusa Veainu, as a result of the club’s pay reduction dispute, does not help the situation. The arrival of Nadolo could be a lightning rod and catalyst for change that new head coach Steve Borthwick needs to galvanise and begin rebuilding the once-famed Tigers.
The versatile 32-year-old was prolific with the ball in hand during his time at Montpellier and with Tuilagi, Kyle Eastmond and Noel Reid having all been released, the Tigers midfield is a blank canvas for Borthwick to work with. He will have to decide whether he sees Nadolo as a clinical wing or a centre who is able to get Leicester moving forward.
Having shone internationally for Fiji and domestically in both New Zealand and France, this is Nadolo’s opportunity to leave a permanent mark on English rugby. Helping re-energise Tigers and put them back on a path to the top of the club game is as good a way as any to do it.
Nick Isiekwe (Northampton Saints)
Though just a loan move for Isiekwe, who should return to Saracens in 2021 providing they can secure promotion back to the Premiership at the first time of asking, that doesn’t prevent this from being a particularly exciting addition, with the England forward set to join up with Courtney Lawes and Alex Coles at Franklin’s Gardens.
Alongside those two aerially-gifted lineout forwards and the ballast of David Ribbans and Alex Moon, Saints have perhaps the best stock of locks and blindside flankers to call upon in the Premiership. Let’s hope Chris Boyd is a fan of the Pieter-Steph du Toit mould at six and four because he is now swimming in similar style options at the two positions.
With a combination of Isiekwe, Lawes or Coles set to be playing week in, week out in the East Midlands, no opposition lineout will be safe when they go up against Northampton. Saints have added depth and quality to an area they are already strong, something which looks to have them in a good place to continue their tilt for the title.
Restart plans encounter a hitch https://t.co/iTBJWgdmCY
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) July 8, 2020
Comments on RugbyPass
I’m all for speeding up the game. But can we be certain that the slowness of the game contributed to fans walking out? I’m not so sure. Super rugby largely suffered from most fans only being able to, really, follow the games played in their own time zone. So at least a third of the fan base wasn’t engaged at any point in time. Second, New Zealand teams always winning. It’s like formula one. When one team dominates, people lose interest. After COVID, with SA leaving and Australia dipping in form, SR became an even greater one horse race. But surely if we believe that shaving seconds off lost time events in rugby is going to draw fans back, we should be shown some figures that supports this idea before we draw any major conclusions. Where are the stats that shows these changes have made that sort of impact? Does a rugby “fan” who lost interest because of ball in play time suddenly have a revived interest because we’ve saved or brought back into play a matter of seconds or a few minutes each game? I doubt it. I don’t thinks it’s even a noticeable difference to be impactful. The 20 min red card idea. Agreed. Let’s give it a go. But I think it’s fairer that the player sent off is substituted and plays no further part in the game as a consequence.
1 Go to commentsThose are pretty good draws for the two top Aussie teams. I certainly wouldn't want my Chiefs to have a quarter final in Brisbane. None of the top teams will want the Crusaders.
1 Go to commentsHonestly, I am a bit lost here …. Ireland - RSA was (at least in my opinion) perhaps (from a purely technical / rugby-skills-show point of view) the pinnacle of the RWC2023 - almost flawless playing (putting aside the kicking of RSA which was the difference between the two teams), rugby at it’s very best …. if I were a Bok and after the game some Irish lads came around saying “see you in 5 weeks same place”, I definitely wouldn’t have thought of it as being in any way “arrogant”, rather a sort of jolly “if we both continue to play like this, no one could stop us” - besides, few of us fans would have, at that time, been surprised to see the same teams playing on 23 september and 28 october 2023 ….. well, we all know Ireland chose to hit a slump to keep the QF curse alive …..
134 Go to commentsThere’s value gleaned from having an All Black star running and training with your team. How many games he starts (or even where he plays in the backline) will be decided on a week by week basis based on the needs for that week. But the overall learning and growth for all concerned, I’d think, is massively beneficial. Especially for Irish players.
8 Go to commentsSon, whith just " raw athlete “ , you are able to beat “ better rugby players “ by 74 points…. May be England should recruit in athletics….
1 Go to commentsPffft. It’s not a one-way street bud and Irish teams don’t seem to have had an issue taking kiwi players previously.
8 Go to commentsParticularly great to have captain Scott Barrett back after going off last week for the Crusaders. Codie Taylor a real leader and mighty Tamaiti Williams join Fletcher Newell in the front row. Those 2 will make a big difference. Great bench with the likes of Tom Christie, Jamie Hannah etc who are playing well. Should be a great derby.
1 Go to commentsDoes a blitz defence not have a weekness against a well-placed grubber kick, perhaps angled cleverly. All the defence is up and the full-back can only cover so much ground. Thoughts?
28 Go to commentsWhile Iose is destructive in the Canes set-up, he is not big for an international 8 and could struggle against the top teams. With his speed, he could be developed into a seven but, as Ben points out, he doesn’t show a scavenging game with the Canes or make dominating tackles. Sotutu has shown a step up this year and attitude plus motivation seems to be the big areas of growth. Deserves another AB shot imo.
3 Go to commentsNaholo is my only question mark for this side. He wasn’t the only one who had a forgettable game against the Brumbies but he was passive, defensively poor and generally lacked energy. Needs to get a whole lot busier for me. I would have liked to see Sullivan on that wing with Higgins on the bench (if staying with a 6-2 as BeegMike points out on here!)
3 Go to commentsWell, I am sure that Eben said exactly what he meant to say, exactly how he meant to say it. Does he strike you as a man that doesn't know arrogance when he sees it. He should know it because he has shaken the arrogance out of many foes before.
134 Go to commentsPls get it into your thick arrogant heads that the final was played by two Southern Hemisphere teams. The best against the best and that Argentina was just unlucky otherwise non of the Northetn Hemisphere teams would have seen the light of day.
134 Go to commentsAs long as New Zealand youth are involved in sport they are passionate for, and are well supported, it’s all good. I love league as well as rugby. NRL clubs have long since scouted the First 15 competitions, the NH and Japan scout super rugby and NPC. It’s a miracle there’s any players left for the all blacks to pick from.
4 Go to commentsI'm a Bok fan, so I don't say this lightly, but he is one of my all time favourite players. I am really going to miss watching him play. Thanks for many great memories. You are a true legend of the game.
3 Go to commentsBest way to deal with all of this is to play another game.
134 Go to commentsIt’s 12-15 games Luke. Ringrose has barely played in 2024 and Henshaw and Keenan have also been out for spells in the same time period. There are always injuries and for younger players to play with the likes of Barrett will be great for them. It’s just looking for negatives where there are none.
8 Go to commentsAndy Goode pushing his own agenda with very dubious considerations on refereeing performances. Luke Pearce speaking a bit of French doesn’t make him a good and adequate referee for the Champions Cup final; his latest refereeing performance in particular was not so great.
4 Go to commentsJordie knows that he has to earn the right to put on the jersey, whatever that jersey might be.
8 Go to commentsThe best outside centre in the world at one point. He will be greatly missed.
3 Go to commentsYip his great for the big moments when needed as a safa really enjoy watching him
4 Go to comments