Always a Wasp
General Category => Wasps Rugby Discussion => Topic started by: Neils on October 31, 2021, 07:30:19 AM
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A Wasps Rumour -
We are interested in Exeter's Sam Skinner apparently.
Match report - Bath win hinged on the red card apparently.
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Skinner - interesting. Gritty and an all year round availability.
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Skinner could make sense. There’s a chance we were trying to sign him, or had expected him to sign but he opted to stay at the 11th hour and it was after that we went and got Fifita.
By all accounts there was an international lock very close to signing who chose to do another year at his current club who were one of the winning clubs in the prem.
Part of me hoped it was Isikwe.
Big question on Skinner would be why he would leave his brother - that doesn’t happen very often in Rugby.
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Not sure how much I would believe Fissler as he seems to be repeating things he hears on podcasts nowadays, the rumour about Ashton having a training ground punch up was on the rugby pod 2 weeks ago.
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A Wasps Rumour -
We are interested in Exeter's Sam Skinner apparently.
Match report - Bath win hinged on the red card apparently.
On Skinner, Chiefs were tight lipped about who signed what, other than saying that 30 different players signed anywhere between 1 and 4 year deals early in 2020, and Skinner was one of those. Must assume his was a two year deal expiring at the end of the season. As I have said before, this half term is when the clubs let players know they either have a new contract on the table, or not. Those that do not are usually given permission to talk to other clubs (that's only fair). The ones who are offered a contract but do not accept are left hanging until January. We know that Chiefs were tight up against the cap, so it can be little surprise they will be offloading. My only thought is that Skinner is not EQP is he (he is Scottish tied, yes)? So, he would, numerically, be replacing another non-EQP player in the squad (not necessarily of the same position).
As to the red card. You could argue that, except, for 8 minutes both teams were on 14 players, and Wasps do not have a stellar record (actually, it is quite abysmal) of capitalising on numerical advantage, even 15 vs 13. We often seem to go in to panic, must get a try or two, mode.
Our red zone conversion rate yesterday was quite poor, from what look like trying too hard.
I think the key yesterday was Dan playing. He was far from on form and whilst you may have seen some passes going astray, he wasn't where he should have been a lot. Are we then stuck with Porter and Hougaard for a few matches? I think so. If so, which of them starts? Hougaard really needs to get his mind in to gear if he wants to start.
I know that Watson had what was, for him, a good game yesterday, but I still think Crossdale is the better full back. A long kick to Watson is not a bad defensive move for our opposition. He doesn't seem so decisive, for example when he let the ball bounce in the second half, hoping it would pop up in to his hands. It didn't, leaving him scrambling to make a poor clearance kick. When he runs, he runs and thinks like a sevens player, looking for wide open space to run around defenders/chasers. He isn't going to find it. What he does find is three or four tacklers, and none of our supporting players. He finds himself out of position and runners can ghost past him. Crossdale has better positional awareness, kicks better, and links up to our players better. He is a full back. Watson is a sevens fast runner.
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A Wasps Rumour -
We are interested in Exeter's Sam Skinner apparently.
Match report - Bath win hinged on the red card apparently.
On Skinner, Chiefs were tight lipped about who signed what, other than saying that 30 different players signed anywhere between 1 and 4 year deals early in 2020, and Skinner was one of those. Must assume his was a two year deal expiring at the end of the season. As I have said before, this half term is when the clubs let players know they either have a new contract on the table, or not. Those that do not are usually given permission to talk to other clubs (that's only fair). The ones who are offered a contract but do not accept are left hanging until January. We know that Chiefs were tight up against the cap, so it can be little surprise they will be offloading. My only thought is that Skinner is not EQP is he (he is Scottish tied, yes)? So, he would, numerically, be replacing another non-EQP player in the squad (not necessarily of the same position).
Interesting about non-EQP... Is YY a leaving non-EQP? Alternatively Minozzi?
I'd be happy about Skinner, albeit about as believable as the Devoto rumour to some extent. And TRP hasn't been reliable this past season...
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Young isn't an EQP has he's captured and capped by Wales.
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Young isn't an EQP has he's captured and capped by Wales.
Meant non-EQP, edited now
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Not sure the red card was a help to Wasps. Health concerns and impact on future games aside, I think on his current form I would trade the man advantage for Jimmy staying on the pitch. Without meaning to disrespect the other players, Jimmy's skill and experience in the team links players in attack and defence, taking pressure off Umaga. It is sort of like Sale when AJ MacGinty isn't playing.
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I agree on the full back debate that Crossdale is a more natural fit. Watson must be giving something that the coaches are seeing. For me he can be dangerous running from deep. With him, Kibirige and Bassett we have serious pace in the back three. It’s a nice problem to have. What does seem certain is that Minozzi is now 3rd in line.
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Skinner - interesting. Gritty and an all year round availability.
Is he not in the Scotland picture anymore then?
Think he’s a good player but imagine this will be a Gaskell replacement.
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Skinner - interesting. Gritty and an all year round availability.
Is he not in the Scotland picture anymore then?
Think he’s a good player but imagine this will be a Gaskell replacement.
AFAIK, he still plays. He has played twice this year (vs Italy and France). He is in their Autumn Nations Series Squad also.
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Yes, my mistake, he is involved internationally - which possibly tempers the appeal a little bit.
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Suppose though that depending on Gaskell leaving or not.... we would have Cardall, Launchbury, Stooke, Fifita, Vukasinovic & Skinner.
You would then say that Skinner could replicate Gaskell in terms of line out and backrow/lock. Moreover, you think that Fifita/Stooke are permeant availabilities unlike Rowlands was. So we could incorporate a Skinner would may be occasionally selected.
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A Wasps Rumour -
We are interested in Exeter's Sam Skinner apparently.
Telegraph reporting he has signed for Edinburgh. They also say Jonny Hill is off to Sale to replace de Jagger.
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A Wasps Rumour -
We are interested in Exeter's Sam Skinner apparently.
Telegraph reporting he has signed for Edinburgh. They also say Jonny Hill is off to Sale to replace de Jagger.
Excellent news.
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From today's Telegraph.
Exeter set for double blow with Jonny Hill and Sam Skinner heading for exit
Exeter are struggling to balance the books with the salary cap coming down to £5million
Exeter are bracing themselves for a double blow with international forwards Jonny Hill and Sam Skinner both heading towards the exit door in the summer.
Skinner, the Scotland flanker, is understood to have agreed a deal to join Edinburgh next summer while England second row Hill is attracting strong interest from Sale. The Sharks are in the market for a replacement for Springbok lock Lood de Jager who looks set to return to South Africa.
Exeter are struggling to balance the books with the salary cap coming down to £5million this season and having retained the core of their squad for several years Rob Baxter now faces some painful decisions. Hill has blossomed under his watch since being picked up from Gloucester’s academy, establishing himself as a first-choice England international and earning a call up to the Lions tour last summer.
Skinner too has come on leaps and bounds having come through the Chiefs academy and his move to Edinburgh will help cement his place in the Scotland team. Speaking earlier this week, director of rugby Baxter anticipated the difficulties of retaining his current squad.
“There is no doubt – and other DORs will probably say this if they’re being honest – if you look at how hard it is to put a squad together in two years’ time, compared to some of the squads that you see knocking around Europe, especially your top Irish provinces and your top French clubs, it’s gonna be tough,” Baxter said. “You are suddenly talking about half a half a cap, almost half the amount spent on the squad.
“It's a big chunk of what you're spending your squad so that realignment of what salary expectations will be, will be will be challenging. That will also make other markets more attractive so the Welsh regions and Scottish regions for your dual-qualified players become more attractive. There's going to be a significant shift in that picture, probably a bigger shift than people really anticipate.”
How can Sale accommodate Hill in their salary cap when they have superstars like Tuilagi, Ford and Faf to name but three ?
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Sale had a lot of big name players sign new deals quickly last summer so only 75% counts towards the cap.
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They must be close to the cap with Hill and Ford arriving.
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A Wasps Rumour -
We are interested in Exeter's Sam Skinner apparently.
Telegraph reporting he has signed for Edinburgh. They also say Jonny Hill is off to Sale to replace de Jagger.
Excellent news.
;)
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We don't need yet more forwards, we have a pack that's about right now.
We need some intelligent, ball playing backs, players that make a positive impact whenever they touch the ball, a point of difference.. and MUST have sound rugby basics.
Say what you like about our backs but they appear devoid in most of these elements...I'd happily clear out at least a couple.
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We need a dependable, reliable, consistent 10; and a 12 and 13
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Definitely
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We have very good options in the front row - both starters and backup options.
The same is true in the 2nd row - assuming launchbury returns as good as ever
The back row is also an area of strength in terms of quality and quantity - although I'm increasingly worried about Jack
The only addition I'd want in the forwards would be an open side flanker who excels on the ground, but under the circumstances that's a bit of a luxury.
In the backs, our starting option at 9 is fantastic. Backup is questionable, but are least there are 3 backup options.
By far the biggest problem is the centres, in terms of both starting quality and sheer numbers. (Assuming Fekitoa is off). Odogwu may be an option if he returns well, but he hadn't completely nailed down centre before his injury.
Our back 3 is adequate, and while I'd prefer better options they're not as much of a priority as centre.
And that's where I stand for fly half too. The club have pinned the future on Jacob with Charlie as backup, and Jimmy/miller covering. I can accept that if we focus on sorting out the centres otherwise we'll forever be mixing and matching a back line
So, sign 3 or 4 centres, then worry about fly half
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Front Row - We are comfortable with Koch now in. Depends what happens with JTA but we should have cash left over from Brookes to cover him, plus reckon Big Mac and Taylor as Frost, Hislop and Millar Mills will be low value.
Second Row - With Fifita and Stooke joining Gask/Launch and Cardall/Vuka back up then we should be comfortable. Saw we are linked to Hill but do we need him? Probably not
Back Row - Again well stocked. With Young off, i'd be keen to get our hands on another 7 whose good over the ball as reckon Alfie/T Willis/J Willis could be busy with England in future. Maybe a Hinkley from Exeter?
Scrum Half - Robson is awesome but so far Hougaard has looked a poor choice and Porter/Wolstenholme don't look like they are making the step up as of yet.
Fly Half - Club has chosen Atkinson/Umaga to rotate and i support it. Think Atkinson will start to take over in future but happy with these two. Maybe an old head to cover when Jimmy finally breaks down. I also like Mathews to cover 10/12.
Centre - Real area of doubt. Fekitoa is likely off and who knows what Mills will be like when back. Odogwu is a star but needs time to get up to speed and Le Boug/Spink/Simmonds isn't enough to cover. We need two Prem quality centres to make up for Fekitoa. Also feel like Hartley isn't far off promotion to Prem team.
Back 3 - Again needs some work. Crossdale is quality and Bassett is a warhorse but Watson/Kilbrige haven't had good seasons and Anderson &Mehson are young. Miller needs to be fit but seems to constantly be injured and for me Minozzi isn't worth what i'd imagine we pay him.
So in summary Centre/Back 3 has to be worked on. The question is .... whose on the market?
Also thought Ed Robinson spoke very well when interviewed.
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Scrum Half - Robson is awesome but so far Hougaard has looked a poor choice and Porter/Wolstenholme don't look like they are making the step up as of yet.
Think Wolstenholme is coming on very nicely this season. Hougaard has not so far proved to be the reliable, experienced, consistent, high quality back up for Robson that many of us hoped when his signing was announced. To be fair to him, his most recent appearances have been plugging a hole on the wing rather than at 9 where he was signed to play. Still hopeful that he will come good.
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re: Malakai, have I missed an article suggesting he's off or are we assuming that as he's out of contract and rumoured to be expensive that he'll be off?
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For me it’s just the centres. Mehson has shown enough to suggest he can play in that back three and we have good youngsters backing up. Centres wise you’d have to think Fekitoa goes. That leaves us with Gopperth, le Bourgeois, Odogwu (not pinning my centre hopes on him yet), Mills, Hartley and Spink who from what I’ve seen could feasibly be in the 23. Conclusion is that we need to add one centre to that lot who you would recognise as a starter. Who? Difficult. If it’s not a SH deal I’d take either of the James brothers from Sale who are enjoying a bit too much bench time and play for a team who may be nearing the cap.
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Have we really got room for six 2nd row players? Given Gaskell's injury record is he worth keeping once his contract is up?
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Have we really got room for six 2nd row players? Given Gaskell's injury record is he worth keeping once his contract is up?
With the reduction in the salary cap you would think the money would be better spent in other areas. Unfortunately there will have be some brutal decisions on these regularly injured players.
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I think Vukasinovic may be gone before Gaskell. De Chavez is also only short term.
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I think Vukasinovic may be gone before Gaskell. De Chavez is also only short term.
Theo did get an extension though.
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I think Vukasinovic may be gone before Gaskell. De Chavez is also only short term.
Theo did get an extension though.
But for how long? Might have been a single year.
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I think Vukasinovic may be gone before Gaskell. De Chavez is also only short term.
Theo did get an extension though.
But for how long? Might have been a single year.
True it could have been but they started to play him a bit more. He went through the normal Wasps build up to playing then broke. I'd like to see more of him before we kick him into the long grass.
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When I've seen him, I've been impressed with TV3.
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I too was very impressed with Theo.
I expected him to be too lightweight, but we never seemed to lack power with him in the scrum and he seemed to add to our mauls - he must obviously use his weight well.
However, the club need to be sure if he'll be that same player before making too many decisions.
If TV3 and launchbury struggle to fully overcome their injuries, then we'll be struggling if we were to lose Gaskell.
Launchbury
Stooke
Gaskell
TV3
Cardall
De Chavez
Fifita
Shields
I don't know if Fifita is a lock who can cover back row, or a flanker that covers 2nd row. But that's 6+2, and in general we'd be pretty happy with virtually any combination starting a game, with question marks only around De Chavez, and accepting that Shields would only start in the case of an extreme injury crisis
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Being perfectly honest and maybe a bit harsh I’d rather offer De Chavez a deal than TV. They must think TV has promise though as his new deal came when they knew he’d be out.
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Is that because of how highly you rate de Chaves?
Or conversely, that you don't rate Theo?
Or more because Theo isn't available, but de Chaves is?
De Chaves is 30, Theo is 25.
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De Chaves is if you like “oven ready” whereas Vukasinovic is a work in progress. And yes, availability comes into it. Plus, I think we already have a few lightweight and mobile locks in Fifita, Gaskell and don’t need a third. De Chaves brings something a bit different. Hard to really comment on Vukasinovic’s ability as he’s been used/available so rarely.
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De Chaves is if you like “oven ready” whereas Vukasinovic is a work in progress. And yes, availability comes into it. Plus, I think we already have a few lightweight and mobile locks in Fifita, Gaskell and don’t need a third. De Chaves brings something a bit different. Hard to really comment on Vukasinovic’s ability as he’s been used/available so rarely.
Isn't De Chaves under contract in the US and will have to go back when their season training commences (Jan??).
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Yes, I think you are right. I’d forgotten that. I’m happy with our locks to be honest. Fifita and Stooke have been great. I really like Cardall and then you have Launchbury and Gaskell to come back in.