Hoping we might see a bit of Fricker and Florence to see what they have. I hope we can sign Boshoff and another bigger back 3 player to go with Cokasinga. Not completely sure about Hardy but he can’t be worse than what we have. I think Rhodri Lewis has some real potential at 9 but is not ready yet.
I think we need the 9 to box kick in terms of height distance and hang time to the standard we saw from Varney and make quicker decisions. I don’t know if Hardy can do this but if he can it will make us a lot stronger.
Swansea University won their relegation play off against Newcastle tonight at St Helens which means BUCS super rugby will continue at St Helens next year.
If we could keep a few off the treatment table we would already have a pretty good backline.
It says Phil is Fijian born in London while his brother, born in Fiji, is English due to his father being "British" and serving in a Scottish regiment based in Edinburgh castle. Confused? You will be.
Jack Walsh re-signed. Good piece of business as covers two vital positions in squad. Boshoff staying until end of season but cannot play in Europe as cup tied
To which Lance has posted that not even he knows just yet.
The Ospreys are still doing the business plans for each of the locations and once they are complete they will make the decision and announce the venue.
Morris is on a 12 month loan. Based on what I have seen would prefer Boshoff. Agree on Cokes and also think Hopkins far more suited to centre or wing than full back.
Lance has a new piece up with WOL. I hope im reading into it wrong, but from the sparse comments he gives, I think they are seriously considering the Brewery field as the main option.
I sincerely hope so, I just worry that the initial costs at St Helens prove too prohibitive. However, like fiddler says, it would be a very short sighted decision.
If what they end up saying is we can’t afford the option with the land mass for training on one site close to the majority of the population community schools and businesses they are in reality saying they cannot afford to get back to anywhere near the top table
Sure though the Scarlets have a newish stadium and it has not helped them. The reality is that location is everything in terms of off field revenue. Unless you get the location on a prime site the Scarlets have shown it will never generate what a prime location can.
Fingers crossed. If it does turn out to be true, as other have said attentions then hopefully turn to 13 and a second choice tighthead.
After a couple more years of rugby under his belt, I don’t know what people would think of potentially trying to re-sign Tiaan Thomas-Wheeler, or just not quite good enough for this level?
Neil Fissler describes himself as a gossip and has written over the past three years that Nicky has signed for six different Gallagher clubs. He is also the media driving force that saw Ealing buy out Y11 in 2021/22/23 and Ospreys merge with Scarlets in 2019 and with Cardiff in 2023.
He may well be right for once but unlike a stopped clock he is only right once in a blue moon.
I owe Fissler an apology but he was bound to get one right one day.
Ben Warren is showing signs of having made a step change in the scrum. He may continue to become a good tight head which can happen almost overnight, as Adam Jones showed. It is the one position where players can only learn by being mangled and learning how to prevent that. Tight heads seem to progress in fits and starts if they progress at all and we can only keep producing lads like Fletcher, Fackrell and Hire in the hope that the epiphany happens.
Has Ruddock unearthed another gem in Freddie Chapman who is currently a loose head but looks a good TH prospect?
Chapman is relatively tall and angular. Not the archetype for a TH. Adam was an international standard scrummager in his early twenties. So was Nicky Thomas but sadly his conditioning made him a passenger around the field. Warren is a converted back rower but is now past his early twenties. Hire has prototype size for a TH but was less than impressive for the under 20,s. He and Fackrell have more time on their side to get up to the level needed. Fletcher looks too small and the original Ruddock plan was to convert him to hooker. Given that Botha struggles to do more than 50 minutes I see plenty of options in house for third and fourth choice none for the primary back up role.
I agree that we need a number 2 th until this bunch develop (or not) but Fletcher is the same size as Nicky and is more of a front row utility type so could end up loose head or even hooker. Chapman is taller than usual but Fagerson and Stuart are both 6' 2"and Colombes is even taller than Chapman at 6' 4". Things seem to be changing on planet prop. It is to me a strange and scary world up front.
It becomes ever more vital that we take care of Morgan Morse after last night. He made more carries, more metres and more tackles than any other player on either team in one of the greatest rugby matches seen this year.
If you didn't catch it live do try to watch it on catch-up if only for the incredible performance of the Italian tight head, Gallorini. He totally mangled our scrum just as he did to the Scots and French.
Life is full of ironies but it was Toby who was very instrumental in ending the Galactico period by coaching Irish to a victory at the Madjeski that exposed to the likes of Rob Davies to the reality that some of the Gakacticos cared more about playing for Gatland and Wales than they did about the Ospreys and led to the realisation tha allowing Johnson and Holley to waste their money was not a recipe for success in Europe and belt tightening was the order of the day. Some of the Galacticos that remained the following season cared enough to allow Tandy as a rookie coach to win a Celtic final but after that there was no coherence to squad and game identity building with a lower budget.
One can only dream about what the likes of Booth and Ruddock could have achieved had they been given the reins for the rebuild rather than Hore Tandy Clarke and Millward. Or indeed had we not hung on to Lyn for a couple of years too long and compounded the problems by handing the reigns to the Hohum clown show for a year when prime expensive talent was wasted.
But IF is sadly the most useless word in the English language.
Had Toby and Mike been around back then they would have been different people with different experiences facing different circumstances so IF definitely is useless. Another thing to bear in mind is that we had to have gone there to get here and, for me at least, the worthwhile thing has been the journey not the destination. Not sure about Hore and Millward, don't know enough, but Ospreys would not be the same club or culture without having had Tandy and Clarkey involved.
Booth is the first decent coach the Ospreys have ever had. Lyn jones coulds coach underdogs but had no idea how to coach a team of 'galacticos' the less said about the rest the better.
khbw, I presume the local ruling party is Labour. I just wonder whether the party is at all interested in Professional sport at all within Swansea. I had the misfortune in having to travel with local Public Transport to and from the game on Friday. I could not depend on my normal lift to the game as my Brother in Law is quite ill at the moment, I was lucky enough to be able to stay with my Granddaughter down near the Law Courts , to be able to get there, we had to walk about 1 and a half miles and catch a 92 bus as no Buses pass the Stadium going in the general direction of the city centre after the game, eg passing the train station.
Is it any wonder that we get the pathetic crowds that we get, fair play to the Ospreys Student ticket prices they are outstanding, but if they can't get back on public transport, would they bother? I know I will not. I will make it to next weekends game but for any 7.30 ish KO times for the rest of this season I will not.
As for renewing for next season it is extremely unlikely that we'll be re-signing, I will be extremely sad, as I started to support the Ospreys when we moved to the Liberty Stadium and apart from 2 seasons when I had Heart problems (open heart surgery) I've been there through thick and thin.
The trouble is Public Transport is not much better in the Bridgend area after 8pm, I have no idea if it would be any better in the Neath or St. Helens area, but I seriously doubt it.
All the above also relates when Swansea City play on a Tuesday or Wednesday or any night time game, for what I can see the local council is not interested.
One of our group recieved a phone all requesting he renew his membership, on the basis games will be at dot com the next season , unless clash with Swans
He committed
I shall not , we are given to understand a statement as to the new venue will be published soon,
I shall wait for the announcement regarding the site of the new stadium and how many games will actually be played at the Stadium next season
Seems late when you consider just three weeks ago Lance gave an interview with Rugby Pass which suggested we'd know sometime this month. Wonder what the hold up is?
Perhaps I'm being negative, but we've had plenty of false dawns before so I'll believe a new ground when I see it.
He certainly has the talent, and his fitness is top notch (if his social media is anything to go by). It all depends if he wants to put himself in the maelstrom of pro sport again
Just to let you know that her indoors has condemned my favourite polo shirt which I blagged from Oldwalls wedding venue in 2011. All because The Ospreylian Trust polo shirts meet with her quality and value seal of approval.
Thanks Jason, I needed a new rag for the car. Please feel free to delete this post if it isn't "news".
next season tickets have been released which will include free entry to the rest of this seasons games (for those who dont already have season tickets)
The announcement post on Twitter has a lovely video of him scoring two extremely similar tries - one for Waunarlywdd U16s v Pencoed and one for the Ospreys against Cardiff. Great news to start the week.
The only downside is that they have to go back to SA in March for the new SA Cup. We might get to keep them for the Edinburgh game on March 1st but I doubt that they will be here for the Munster game which is exactly the sort of game we will need this cover for.
Thought it was reported that they are here for Ulster, Edinburgh and Munster games. Saw Morgan Morris limping around with a bandage on his leg yesterday, so seemingly he won't be fit soon.
Three @CheetahsRugby players, Victor Sekekete, Jeandre Rudolph and Evardi Boshoff are on there way to @ospreys in the short term. Will be back at Cheetahs before SA Cup starts.
I know we are yet to start releasing news of player signings and re-signings but the deals are being done. We have to expect some players leaving and new players coming in or coming up from the Academy.
The future is bright - the future is black and white.
Might be an idea to rename the thread retention departures and arrivals news 2024.
I will start with what we know. Which is simply North gone. Then we have rumours. Interest in Hardy but parties apart on price. Speculation Nicky has release clause and may go to England. Speculation Scarlets reserve prop Steffan Thomas on verge of signing.
I would be surprised after the injury records if Cuthbert or Regan were offered new deals.
Lewis Jones and Tristan Davies starting for Cheetahs on Saturday in SA Cup.
Fender re signs, excellent news he was a revelation before he got injured.👍
Kieran Hardy confirmed
Any news on a 10?
Morse re-signed
Any good news to come out this week? He asks hopefully.
Swansea University won their relegation play off against Newcastle tonight at St Helens which means BUCS super rugby will continue at St Helens next year.
The four players at the Cheetahs are:
Cam Jones (prop) Will Hickey (flanker) Tristan Davies (Lock/Flank) Lewis Jones(lock)
Steff Thomas signing confirmed.
Phil Cokanasinga signed.
Jack Walsh re-signed. Good piece of business as covers two vital positions in squad. Boshoff staying until end of season but cannot play in Europe as cup tied
According to Andy Howell it’s St Helens. On X by the way.
A poster on X claims that Cam Jones (prop) is one of the 3 Ospreys heading to the Cheetahs.
Fissler reporting Phil Cokanasiga, Leicester inside centre joining in summer on 2 yr deal
Lance has a new piece up with WOL. I hope im reading into it wrong, but from the sparse comments he gives, I think they are seriously considering the Brewery field as the main option.
We have registered a new hooker for Europe. Chris Moore.
Accounts filed yesterday show we lost £2.1 million up to June 23
Kieran Hardy to us apparently, good signing hope it’s true this strengthens our squad.
Neil Fissler describes himself as a gossip and has written over the past three years that Nicky has signed for six different Gallagher clubs. He is also the media driving force that saw Ealing buy out Y11 in 2021/22/23 and Ospreys merge with Scarlets in 2019 and with Cardiff in 2023.
He may well be right for once but unlike a stopped clock he is only right once in a blue moon.
Fissler calling Nicky to Tigers.
It becomes ever more vital that we take care of Morgan Morse after last night. He made more carries, more metres and more tackles than any other player on either team in one of the greatest rugby matches seen this year.
If you didn't catch it live do try to watch it on catch-up if only for the incredible performance of the Italian tight head, Gallorini. He totally mangled our scrum just as he did to the Scots and French.
Jack Regan has joined a club in Japan.
For those that wish the new venue to be St Helens Lobby your local councillor, particularly those of the ruling party
One of our group recieved a phone all requesting he renew his membership, on the basis games will be at dot com the next season , unless clash with Swans
He committed
I shall not , we are given to understand a statement as to the new venue will be published soon,
I shall wait for the announcement regarding the site of the new stadium and how many games will actually be played at the Stadium next season
Brilliant article from Ross Harries about Toby Booth - Toby Booth: 'I won’t have the word ‘survival’. It’s a case of, what do we do to thrive?' (rugbypass.com)
Garyn Phillips has resigned along with Luke Scully.
Just to let you know that her indoors has condemned my favourite polo shirt which I blagged from Oldwalls wedding venue in 2011. All because The Ospreylian Trust polo shirts meet with her quality and value seal of approval.
Thanks Jason, I needed a new rag for the car. Please feel free to delete this post if it isn't "news".
next season tickets have been released which will include free entry to the rest of this seasons games (for those who dont already have season tickets)
Any more re-signings to be announced this week?
So far the re-signings have been excellent, hope it continues.
TOT's sponsored player Dan Edwards has re-signed a deal with the Ospreys.
2 bloody good re-signings looking forward to more coming.
Tom Botha has re-signed as well.
Great to see that news of players signing new deals is beginning to filter out.
Keelan has re-signed with the Ospreys.
The announcement post on Twitter has a lovely video of him scoring two extremely similar tries - one for Waunarlywdd U16s v Pencoed and one for the Ospreys against Cardiff. Great news to start the week.
The first two players are flankers with one able to play lock and the other No8 and the 3rd player is a centre.
Three @CheetahsRugby players, Victor Sekekete, Jeandre Rudolph and Evardi Boshoff are on there way to @ospreys in the short term. Will be back at Cheetahs before SA Cup starts.
The Ospreylian Trust celebrates up-and-coming player | Ospreys (ospreysrugby.com)
Just remind me Jason, how cheap were those Ospreylian Trust polo shirts what I bought and where can forum readers make their bulk orders?
Nudge nudge wink wink etc.
I know we are yet to start releasing news of player signings and re-signings but the deals are being done. We have to expect some players leaving and new players coming in or coming up from the Academy.
The future is bright - the future is black and white.