Moderator: Puja
Excellent catch!Raggs wrote:Since the conversation is on poaching, the last name in the Scotland squad image is rather out of place alphabetically. Suspicions that it was Vellacott and only replaced last minute.
Fair enough. We’re going round in circles and clearly aren’t going to persuade each other.Puja wrote:Because the cash rich RFU has more than enough people to look through in England and it would be spending money for very little return? As you said, schools go poaching anyway, so anyone who fancies playing in England can - why bother going hunting when our schools will bring in players anyway?Mellsblue wrote:Why wouldn’t we pick them up - Brian Redpath is open about the fact he’s more than happy for his son to play for England because that’s where the age group infrastructure and pro money is.Puja wrote:
But why? Who would we ever get who's been schooled and in academies and age grade in Wales or Scotland? We never pick up anyone who's lived in Llanelli all their life, but who has an English grandparent; it just doesn't happen.
Puja
George North is half English and was born in Kings Lynn. My brother-in-law is English but grew up in Wales - people do move in that direction. Granted there’s not many but it’s little money and hassle for the RFU to have scouts nipping over the borders, north and west, to watch school boy players. Top public schools do it why would the cash rich RFU not?
As for older players, we can't pick anyone playing outside of England anyway, so there's no point in looking for Chris Harrises and Tomas Francises even if we wanted them.
I get your point to Which of not trusting schools and clubs to be 100%, but even with them being rich, they've got a limit. Why spend money on placing someone in another country where there's not many EQP and those that are aren't likely to want to come, when you could use that money to place an extra person in Manchester and stand 10x more chance of finding someone than by stranding them in Scotland. Hell, we don't have a development officer in NZ, which I'd've thought would be a much more prolific hunting ground, so why would we have one in Wales?
Puja
His dad is quoted as saying that England are his first choice and was honest enough to say that money played a big part in that decision.Puja wrote:Anyone know if Redpath feels English or if he's more of a Moriarty type?
Puja
Didn’t catch the game, how did Fraser Dingwall go? His dad might have a different viewMellsblue wrote:His dad is quoted as saying that England are his first choice and was honest enough to say that money played a big part in that decision.Puja wrote:Anyone know if Redpath feels English or if he's more of a Moriarty type?
Puja
I didn't watch it either. Fraser is incredibly well educated and he'll make the correct decision, ie keep his England options open until he knows whether he's good enough and if he's not he can play for Scotland! He must be highly thought of as I think he's in a year early.Banquo wrote:Didn’t catch the game, how did Fraser Dingwall go? His dad might have a different viewMellsblue wrote:His dad is quoted as saying that England are his first choice and was honest enough to say that money played a big part in that decision.Puja wrote:Anyone know if Redpath feels English or if he's more of a Moriarty type?
Puja
I will ask his dad next time I see him. He went into the English pathway because the coaching was so good.Mellsblue wrote:I didn't watch it either. Fraser is incredibly well educated and he'll make the correct decision, ie keep his England options open until he knows whether he's good enough and if he's not he can play for Scotland! He must be highly thought of as I think he's in a year early.Banquo wrote:Didn’t catch the game, how did Fraser Dingwall go? His dad might have a different viewMellsblue wrote: His dad is quoted as saying that England are his first choice and was honest enough to say that money played a big part in that decision.
Ibitoye’s not tall enough to have ever been described as ‘lanky’, but you’re right, he’s definitely put on some bulk.Puja wrote:Anyone know if Redpath feels English or if he's more of a Moriarty type?
Thought Ibitoye looked very good, although the try the commentators were enthusing about owed a lot to some very unenthusiastic tackling. He has put on a hell of a lot of bulk though - he was a lanky young thing last year with legs that might snap in a high breeze, but appears to have found the gym and hit it hard in the last 6 months. Hopefully that's not to his long-term detriment.
Puja