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 wonder what impact Samson has had on their attack, as the team seems less prone to trundle it up the middle, take the tackle and then trundle it up again. I lost faith in the coach last year as the Rebelss looked like a 2nd/3rd rate South African team. I also disliked Gordon standing back, often ignored as the forward battle went on and on. Maybe its our Aussie way of not getting off our A***’s until the enemy is at the gate.
83 Go to commentsThanks for the write up. Great to see the Rebs winning, I am a little interested in how they will go against the remaining kiwi teams, I think they’ve only played Hurricanes and Highlanders but how great to see these players performing!! I also see Parling has a job beyond June 30! A good move by RA? Also how do you fix the Rebels previously scratchy defence?
83 Go to commentsbe smart - go black
13 Go to commentsNext week the Crusaders hopefully have Scott Barrett back. Will be great to have the captain back. Hopefully he will be the All Black captain as well.
12 Go to commentsExciting place to be for the young fella. I expected he was French Polynesian when I saw him included in the France 6N squad (after seeing him in NZs), and therefor be strong grounds we might loose him to rugby down here. Good, in that he is good enough to warrant such a profile, and from a journalism’s fan interaction aspect, to finally get a back ground story on the fella. Hope he has settled into NZ OK and that at least one rugby country will fit with him to help his development, which, if so, he should surely continue for a few years, and then that he can experience France to it’s fullest with a bit more maturity and less reliance on family than you would have at his current age. A good 3 or 4 years before he would be ready for International duty if he wanted to wait. Of course he already sounds good enough to accept a call up, and to cap himself, in the more immediate future (he’d have to be very very good in the case of the ABs), and he’ll get a great taste of that being with the Canes who have a bunch who are just a few years further into their career and looking likely Internationals themselves.
13 Go to commentsI remember towards the end of the original broadcasting deal for Super rugby with Newscorp that there was talk about the competition expanding to improve negotiations for more money - more content, more cash. Professional rugby was still in its infancy then and I held an opposing view that if Super rugby was a truly valuable competition then it should attract more broadcasters to bid for the rights, thereby increasing the value without needing to add more teams and games. Unfortunately since the game turned professional, the tension between club, talent and country has only grown further. I would argue we’re already at a point in time where the present is the future. The only international competitions that matter are 6N, RC and RWC. The inter-hemisphere tours are only developmental for those competitions. The games that increasingly matter more to fans, sponsors and broadcasters are between the clubs. Particularly for European fans, there are multiple competitions to follow your teams fortunes every week. SA is not Europe but competes in a single continental competition, so the travel component will always be an impediment. It was worse in the bloated days of Super rugby when teams traversed between four continents - Africa, America, Asia and Australia. The percentage of players who represent their country is less than 5% of the professional player base, so the sense of sacrifice isn’t as strong a motivation for the rest who are more focused on playing professional rugby and earning as much from their body as they can. Rugby like cricket created the conundrum it’s constantly fighting a losing battle with.
4 Go to commentsOh wow… “But as La Rochelle proved in winning in Cape Town this season, a cross-continental away assignment need not spell the end of days.” La Rochelle actually proved quite the opposite. After traveling to Cape town and back they (back-to-back and current champs) got mercilessly thumped the next week. If travel is not the reason, why else would a full-strength powerhouse like La Rochelle get dumped on their @r$e$ one week later?
26 Go to commentsYou know he can land a winning conversion after the full time siren is up. (Even if it takes two attempts.)
5 Go to commentsA very insightful article from Jake. I would love to know how South African’s feel about their move to Europe. Do you prefer playing in Europe or want to go back to Super Rugby?
4 Go to commentspure fire
1 Go to commentsA very well thought out summary of all the relevant complications…agree with your ”refer the Cricket Test versus 20/20 comparison”. More also definitely doesn't necessarily mean better!
4 Go to commentsMust be something when you are only 19 y.o and both NZ and France want you. Btw he wasn’t the only new caledonian in french U20 as Robin Couly also lived in Noumea until 17. Hope he’s successful wherever he chooses to play.
13 Go to comments“Several key players in the Stade Rochelais squad are in their thirties” South Africans are going to hate the implications of that comment!
5 Go to commentsI know Leinster did a job on La Roche but shortly after HT Leinster were 30-13 ahead of them and at a similar time Toulouse were trailing Exeter. At 60 mins Leinster were 27 ahead but after 67 mins Toulouse were only 19 ahead before Exeter collapsed. That’s heavier scoring by Leinster against the Champions. I think people are looking at Toulouses total a little too much. I also think Northhampton are in with a real chance, albeit I’d put Leinster as favourites. If Leinster make the final I expect them to win by more than ten and with control.
5 Go to commentsHey Nick, your match analysis is decent but the top and tail not so much, a bit more random. For a start there’s a seismic difference in regenerating any club side over a test team. EJ pretty much had to urinate with the appendage he’d been given at test level whereas club success is impacted hugely by the budget. Look no further than Boudjellal’s Toulon project for a perfect example. The set ups at La Rochelle and Leinster are like chalk and cheese and you are correct that Leinster are ahead. Leinster are not just slightly ahead though, they are light years ahead on their plans, with the next gen champions cup team already blooded, seasoned and developing at speed from their time manning the fort in the URC while the cream play CC and tests. They have engineered a strong talent conveyor belt into their system, supported by private money funnelled into a couple of Leinster private schools. The really smart move from Leinster and the IRFU however is maximising the Irish Revenue tax breaks (tax relief on the best 10 years earnings refunded at retirement) to help keep all of their stars in Ireland and happy, while simultaneously funding marquee players consistently. And of course Barrett is the latest example. But in no way is he a “replacement for Henshaw”, he’s only there for one season!!! As for Rob Baxter, the best advice you can give him is to start lobbying Parliament and HMRC for a similar state subsidy, but don’t hold your breath… One thing Cullen has been very smart with is his coaching team. Very quickly he realised his need to supplement his skills, there was talk of him exiting after his first couple of years but he was extremely shrewd bringing in Lancaster and now Nienaber. That has worked superbly and added a layer that really has made a tangible difference. Apart from that you were bang on the money… 😉😂
5 Go to commentsNot sure exactly what went wrong for him at Glasgow but it’s pretty clear he ain’t Franco’s cup of tea. Suspect he would have been better served heading out of Scotland around the same time as Finn, Hoggy and Jonny!
1 Go to commentsBulls disrespected the Northampton supporters and the competition. Decide quickly, fully in or out.
26 Go to commentsI wonder if Parling was ever on England’s radar as a coach? Obviously Borthwick is a great lineout coach, but I do worry he might be taking on too much as both head coach and forwards coach.
1 Go to commentsJason Jenkins has one cap. When Etzebeth was his age he had over 80 caps. Experience matters. He will never amount to what Etzebeth has because he hasn’t been developed as an international player.
2 Go to commentsSays 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…
5 Go to comments