Rugby Banter Page - Weekly Round Up
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Monday 4th May:
Jean De Villiers On Course To Return For Rugby World Cup:
Springbok captain Jean de Villiers is ahead of schedule on his road to
recovery ahead of the World Cup in England in September.
De Villiers dislocated his patella in the South Africa's 6-12 reversal to Wales
in Cardiff at the end of November last year and had to undergo reconstructive
knee surgery.
Although not involved in field training, De Villiers has attended a Boks training camp in Johannesburg and the South African National Team’s Doctor, Craig Roberts, has said he is happy with the centre’s recuperation
"We are very happy with Jean's progress, we are taking it week-by-week, he
is doing really well at the moment," Roberts said.
"We need to start programming him to get a couple of games so that he can
get some game time and confidence before the World Cup."
Fiji Coach, McKee, Calls For Eligibility Rule Change After Nathan Hughes Turns Down World Cup Selection:
After impressive Wasps back-row Nathan Hughes reneged on the opportunity to represent the country of his birth, Fiji, at the Rugby World Cup, Fijian coach John McKee has welcomed the IRB’s purported interest in extending the period a player must spend in a country to become eligible for their national team from three to five years.
Hughes, 23, may now pledge his international future to England.
McKee feels that the integrity of international Rugby may be damaged by the constant exploitation of the residency rules by International teams.
‘The Fijian union would definitely be supportive of an extension to the residency rule,’ said McKee. ‘There’s a massive threat to the Pacific Islands with players moving offshore. I don’t think it should be scrapped completely, because people migrate for genuine reasons, but it could definitely be looked at.
‘Professionalism has brought a lot of change and now we’ve got guys moving to France at 18 years old who go on to play for France. It’s for the Rugby Football Union or the French Rugby Federation to decide whether, in five or six yea’s time, they want their team made up of Pacific Islanders or English and French players. That’s a question for the unions. What do the public want?’
Tuesday 5th May:
Luatua To Captain Blues After Kaino’s Season Ended By Injury:
Twenty-four year old All Black lock/back row Steven Luatua has been named as replacement Blues captain after regular captain Jerome Kaino was ruled out for the rest of the Super Rugby season due to injury.
Kaino has dislocated his ring finger and is expected to miss the next eight weeks of rugby which rules him out of Super Rugby.
Rene Ranger Undergoes Successful Neck Operation:
Barnstorming Montpellier and All Blacks capped centre Rene Ranger has undergone a successful operation on his neck before he returns to his native New Zealand.
Ranger, who moved to Montpellier in 2013, underwent the surgery to fix a herniated disc on the top of his spine and will, subsequently, miss the rest of The Top 14 season.
In March, Ranger had announced that he was cutting his three year deal with Montpellier a year short in order to return to New Zealand and sign with the Auckland Blues.
Wednesday 6th May:
High Spending Pau Add Two More To Their Roster:
Newly promoted French Top 14 side Pau have announced that they have signed Fijian international wing Mosese Ratuvou and New Zealander prop Chris King from next season.
Ratuvou, 32, signed on a two-year deal from bottom Top 14 club Lyon, with whom he has been since 2009.
King, 34, joined Pau on a one-year contract from Montpellier, where he has been for a year after notching up more than 100 Super Rugby matches with the Crusaders and the Highlanders, and will join his compatriots, coach Simon Mannix and backs, Colin Slade and Conrad Smith.
Harlequins winger Tikoirotuma To Join London Irish:
London Irish have signed Harlequins' Fijian winger Asaeli Tikoirotuma.
The 28-year-old made 13 appearances for Quins, scoring two tries. Previously, Tikoirotuma played in New Zealand for The Chiefs, where he won two Super Rugby titles.
Thursday 7th May:
WRU Withdraw Contract Offer To Toby Faletau:
After missing a deadline to sign a dual contract with his club, The Dragons, and the Welsh National Team, number eight Toby Faletau has seen the Welsh Rugby Union withdraw their contract offer.
Faletau, who has been linked with a money spinning move to Bath, attributed his delay in signing the deal to the fact that he has recently changed agents.
"It was disappointing he didn't sign a national dual contract," said Wales head coach Warren Gatland.
"He has another year left on his contract with the Dragons and there has been interest in him from other clubs in the UK.
"That's not to say there wouldn't be one [a dual contract] on offer to him for next season, but it's off the table at the moment."
There are 12 Wales players on dual contracts, which are funded 60% by the WRU and 40% by the regions.
Waratahs Pursue Move For The Western Forces Ben McCalman:
Wallabies and Waratahs coach Michael Cheika believes it will be hard to prise Ben McCalman away from the Western Force, but admits any team would be boosted by the Australian Internationa’s presence.
After the departures of Wycliff Palu and Jacques Potgieter, The Waratahs pursuit of McCalman has been an open secret.
McCalman’s current club, the Western Force, were hoping to tie the Wallaby capped number eight to a new deal before this weekend but the contract has been delayed, which has seen speculation mount that McCalman may defect to the Super Rugby Champions, The Waratahs.
“Any team would be interested in Ben, but I think it will be hard to get him away from the Force,” Cheika said.
“One thing in speaking to Ben, he has loved his time and his footy at the Force. Whatever he’s going to do, that is going to count a lot.”
Friday 8th May:
Cheetahs Coach To Step Down At End Of The Season:
Cheetahs head coach Naka Drotské will step down at the end of the Super Rugby season to take up a position with a foreign club.
The 44-year-old has been in charge of the Cheetahs for eight years, but has decided to walk away after a arduous campaign which has seen them fall to the bottom of the South African conference.
A former Springbok hooker, Drotské was part of South Africa's World Cup winning side in 1995, while as a coach he led the Cheetahs to the Super Rugby play-offs for the first time in 2013.
"Free State Rugby honours Naka Drotske for his enormous contribution to Free State and Cheetah Rugby and wishes him all of the best for the future," read a statement from the franchise.
