We Have Lost Fifita!

[Westy68]

With the greatest respect to Jimmy, at 39 (next season) I wouldn't think he'd be top of anyone's shopping list.

I have to agree with that, he’s been a great servant but all good things come to an end

[andermt]

With the greatest respect to Jimmy, at 39 (next season) I wouldn't think he'd be top of anyone's shopping list.

Rumour in TRP today says he may be off to Tigers.

[HDAWG]

The literal only, and I mean ONLY, saving grace here is potential for marquee signing to be a centre. I mean perhaps we are looking, but frustrated at already using a marquee signing. Fifita wants to leave and it's a happy accident. But it's mighty late into transfer window as is...

I really like Fifita and he's been a lot better than I thought, but really not confident in recruitment given Young, Fekitoa and Fifita leaving (BOTH marquee signings leaving) and only Koch joining. Urgh.

As I alluded to earlier, Wasps will have known he wasn't staying now for weeks, hence they are looking around.

Launchbury will be our one and only allowed Marquee, so we have no wiggle room there either. OTOH, don't be surprised that when Joe's contract is up, he will be offered a LOT less money, and probably not be our Marquee any longer. We might then see him leave as well. As clubs juggle this smaller cap, we are going to see much more movement than we might like to.

Are you sure Joe's the only Marquee? I thought there was 2 marquee signings (Lima and Fekitoa) now only 1. Launchbury not really part of that.

[Neils]

Telegraph says he is on a "lucrative three year contract" with Wasps.

[Vespula Vulgaris]

It's always sad to see someone of his quality leave, but I heard a rumour not so long ago that he'd been offered a truly massive amount by a different club and as he was on a trial 1+1 (standard contract for a lot of players when they first join) he was gonna leave.

In reality if he wants to play in the back row then he's way down the pecking order. I mean we can't even find room for Nemo this week after making a billion tackles last time he played. 

If we weren't dealing with the injury crisis we have been we'd probably hardly have seen him at all...

[Bloke in North Dorset]

The literal only, and I mean ONLY, saving grace here is potential for marquee signing to be a centre. I mean perhaps we are looking, but frustrated at already using a marquee signing. Fifita wants to leave and it's a happy accident. But it's mighty late into transfer window as is...

I really like Fifita and he's been a lot better than I thought, but really not confident in recruitment given Young, Fekitoa and Fifita leaving (BOTH marquee signings leaving) and only Koch joining. Urgh.

As I alluded to earlier, Wasps will have known he wasn't staying now for weeks, hence they are looking around.

Launchbury will be our one and only allowed Marquee, so we have no wiggle room there either. OTOH, don't be surprised that when Joe's contract is up, he will be offered a LOT less money, and probably not be our Marquee any longer. We might then see him leave as well. As clubs juggle this smaller cap, we are going to see much more movement than we might like to.

I don't know Joe's personal situation so this is a gross generalisation.

The only way most players looking at the back of their careers will get offered more money is if they go abroad, and there's more to that decision than just money. If they're over say, 30, they are likely to have a wife/partner and family. The partner may even have their own career and kids settled in school, so staying put on a lower salary might be a preferred solution rather dragging kids out of school and a wife having to give up work and maybe start a new career.

Again I'm not aware of Koch's personal situation, but I did wonder if part of his decision making process was that he could probably stay where he was living and there'd be no disruption for his family.

[Shugs]

I must admit I’m not massively bothered by this. Is Fifita a good player - undoubtedly. But if you break it down for me he’s behind Willis x 2, Shields, Carr, Barbeary back row wise and probably behind Launchbury, Stooke and for me Cardall in the second row. That’s fine as a squad player but when you add in the likely cost it starts not to add up. We also have no idea of the full picture either in terms of ins and outs so we have to wait for it all to play out before we see the net result. One thing is for sure - with a huge reduction in the cap every Prem team is (and already has) going to be shedding some expensive players.

[wasps]

Are you sure Joe's the only Marquee? I thought there was 2 marquee signings (Lima and Fekitoa) now only 1. Launchbury not really part of that.

There's been 2 marquee spots for a few seasons.

One is essentially for your most expensive player who has been with the club for at least 2 seasons - this is the original marquee position and the one that it has always been suggested is filled by Joe launchbury

I believe the other allows for an overseas signing. I.e. someone who hasn't played on the prem for over a season.
It's this spot that we used to sign the likes of George Smith, Kurtley Beale and Charles Piutau.



Obviously we have no real idea of anyone salaries.
However, the assumption is that Joe launchbury is one marquee player.
Lima was probably the overseas one when he originally signed, but that would have moved over to Fekitoa at some point


That second marquee spot disappears now, so we're left with just 1, and it's probably filled by Joe launchbury

[HDAWG]

Are you sure Joe's the only Marquee? I thought there was 2 marquee signings (Lima and Fekitoa) now only 1. Launchbury not really part of that.

There's been 2 marquee spots for a few seasons.

One is essentially for your most expensive player who has been with the club for at least 2 seasons - this is the original marquee position and the one that it has always been suggested is filled by Joe launchbury

I believe the other allows for an overseas signing. I.e. someone who hasn't played on the prem for over a season.
It's this spot that we used to sign the likes of George Smith, Kurtley Beale and Charles Piutau.



Obviously we have no real idea of anyone salaries.
However, the assumption is that Joe launchbury is one marquee player.
Lima was probably the overseas one when he originally signed, but that would have moved over to Fekitoa at some point


That second marquee spot disappears now, so we're left with just 1, and it's probably filled by Joe launchbury

Well shoot. Hope we can afford some players still...

[Vespula Vulgaris]

In the long run we'll probably do better. The fact that players like Beale and Piutau came in on massive amounts caused some upset in the squad. If we canbget a squad that all buy into the idea that salaries need to be equitable through the whole lot of them then overall morale should be a lot higher.

[NellyWellyWaspy]

In the long run we'll probably do better. The fact that players like Beale and Piutau came in on massive amounts caused some upset in the squad. If we can get a squad that all buy into the idea that salaries need to be equitable through the whole lot of them then overall morale should be a lot higher.

I agree.

[Rossm]

Telegraph says he is on a "lucrative three year contract" with Wasps.

Yeah sure. The author also seems to believe we are still playing at the Ricoh. So i don't give any credence to anything he says.

[JonnyD]

We will soon also feel the negatives of producing the recent great new crop of academy talent and young talent we’ve signed.
They’ll all be pretty cheap now but in five years we’ll never be able to keep all of west, Oghre, Barbeary, Willis x2, umaga, Atkinson, Odogwu, Spink, Crossdale + Simonds, Frost, Porter, Wolstenholme, Hartley if they’re all around the 23 each week. Players will really have to adjust their wage expectations now.

If Fifita goes we have to sign Meihuizen as we’ll  be short there with Gaskell probably in the twilight of his career with us. Although  realistically would Meihuizen come any cheaper and if he can play for Scotland, he’ll be away more than Fifita would have been for Tonga. Very strange (also strange if we only signed him on a 1+1, very risky for him signing if he could be dumped after a year having moved his family around the world, but maybe this is good business sense after our recent return on our Sopoaga investment.

I imagine any Gopperth movement would be because of a two year deal and a coaching option afterwards - if that’s his future we should be spending whatever it takes to keep him I think, but do we have an opening for him?

[Vespula Vulgaris]

Gaskell still has several years in him yet. And not so long ago he was definitely first choice. I'm always happy when I see a 2nd row of him and Launch. Yes he's injured, but let's face it, who isn't?

I'm quite pleased to see that coming to Wasps has acted as a Springboard for a player's career. We revitalised WLR when he came, and if Fifita has landed a very lucrative deal after playing with us that isn’t going to make us a less attractive club for others

[Shugs]

For me Fifita is a “nice player to have”. Whereas I’d class having people like Koch, Launchbury, Fekitoa, Willis, West as players that can take you to the next level. You need a lot of Fifita’s but you can’t afford them to be your top earners.