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Well done to all three! The future looks bright GB&G

Top of the League 2014-2015 Season

That all sounds very promising. There is nothing better than a one team player, the likes of Digger and Lawes, so it's good to see young players stepping up to the next level.

I don't often go to Wanderers matches, but will be proud to say I saw Teimana's first game as a Saint in future years I'm sure. I don't know the other two, especially Jack, but I trust Jim's eye for young talent, along with Dusty's, Dickens and Dorian's.

Very well done to those three and also to Dusty and his coaching staff. I've waited years to see this kind of news from the academy on a regular basis, and Saints have historically been the poorer for its absence.

Good news all round.

You can't always get what you want, But if you try sometimes well you might find, You get what you need.

Richards/Jagger

tom stephenson is right at the top of his age group in the country. fast, physical and a good skill set. he'll be a contender at 13 and i'd guess they will keep him in mind at 12, though will be more willing to play him at 12 one level down for a year or so, while he's not far off being capable of backing up george now at 13.

jack allsopp has had 2 years in sedbergh's 1stXV and is vice captain this year. sedbergh are the gold standard in schools rugby this year as usual.he's fast , hard and well skilled with good hands . because he's not the tallest, he may well end up as a fetcher.we're starting to look very balanced for the future in the back row

i think we may have another coming from sedbergh (wing) and a big tough 6 from cambridge way.

Well done all.Good news for a damp and dreary wednesday afternoon

Bridesmaids no more.

Stephenson's play always reminds me of that of a young Will Carling - good luck for his further development.

Good to see the lads making the step up from within. Hopefully the relationship with Championship/National One clubs will continue as the opportunity to play at a decent level regularly is vital to the development of the younger player. Indeed game time has been a consistent problem for the Academy system as a whole over the past view years.

Saw on the Offy board a link to a clip of Glyn Hughes the Senior Academy 10 which includes highlights from his loan periods at Cambs and Moseley. Very interesting not to say exciting viewing, hopefully he'll be another we see a bit more of in a Saints shirt next season.

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gav, i saw they'd been trying him at 13 for wandies recentlyand he's played 15 at moseley as well as 10, and he may well have done a bit at 12

we're obviously strong at 10 at the moment, but if the coaches are keen on him in the long term, it stands him in good stead to be both versatile and a good place kicker "to boot"

we're loaded at 10 now, with the senior pair being followed up by hughes, hooley and then olver. the juniors are all good players

as to Teimana, who i didn't mention above because i've rambled on enough about him, i was wondering which AB it was he reminded me of to look at when it came to me - Mark "Cowboy" Shaw . T looks like Cowboy on his first UK tour (before his face got busted up). Shaw wore his hair a bit shorter mind you

The future's bright, the future's GB&G!!

Flippin Ell Ken, no pressure on T eh?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2012:04:04:17:24:09 by Robby Richmond.

He was starting at 10 for Mose quite regularly after initially impressing at 15 Broonie but has had the odd injury.

He's proved a handy squad player for Saints during the past couple of seasons as he covers a number of positions for the Wandies quite successfully. Bit of a double edged sword for him though as there is a danger of turning into a player with a Jack of all Trades tag, exactly what happened to CLP a couple of seasons back I recall!

I think from what I've seen live and from his promotional highlights clips he has a future as an out and out 10 if given the chance. Billesley Road faithful certainly appear to think so. I would rather see him start Wandies games over Tonks who is after all on his way to Jockland.

It might just be me here, and I may be being a tad harsh (as usual), but from what I've seen from Harrison and Nutley, I'm far more optimistic about the future of Teimana. He seems to have a bit more about him in the top two inches and picks his opportunities for turnovers and tackles more carefully, whereas Nuts tends to throw himself into every single tackle, thus being far less likely to achieve any turnovers.

I suppose that's not a negative, I mean, Lewis Moody made a very successful career out of chucking his body about and not being a turnover machine. I guess I see Harrison as a more natural openside than Nuts?

Haven't seen much of Stephenson and even less of Allcock, but hopefully we'll all be seeing much more of both of them in the years to come!

Gav, i'd agree about tonker; he's chosen to end his time at saints (assuming he had a choice) so good luck to him, but give the time to hughes (assuming we keep him).

realistically it's the 3rd string at 10 for the moment, but being a really decent goalkicker (not an occasional option like tonker) and being a good utility may be hughes' USP for the couple of years he needs to stay in the programme before things start to open up a bit.

potentially, he is a big kicker (seems to have developed his leg strength a lot , perhaps as a result of rehab? his new found range has made him a weapon - the rewards of application ), who plays high up the gain line from where he can both run and distribute and is a bleddy awkward tackler . he is also somewhat driven temperamentally , so his humble rugby origins are already being overcome if the coaches keep faith. he just needs to hang in there.the spot he needs his eye on is actually tonker's/tom may's at present ; that will give him time to take aim at ryan and stephen if it works out that way

interesting about christian lewis-pratt. developed very early physically, was in a top schools programme at Wellington College, sevens trophies yadda yadda.a lad with a silver spoon.

i never thought CLP was a natural kicker from hand or tee; the ball made the wrong noise and he just seemed to put more effort into the kick than came out in results.not very technical, but it's like you know a cat when you see one even if you can't describe it .he was a strong runner and defender and had decent hands, but for me was either a centre or a fullback , just not quite having the instinct to run a game ; however, he'd been captain of his school teams through the age groups and he saw himself as a 10, anything else as a slight.

the coaches here saw it differently , off he went to leeds where he had a few good games but gradually got shunted off on loan. i'd actually think he had a better chance if he'd have grasped the opportunities which his versatility presented him with, rather than seeing it as a problem.

for young players, the crucial thing is they have to reach a certain level within a certain time in order not to fall by the wayside . if you're going to be a 3rd string for a bit you're under challenge during that time from the next 1-3 years of talent coming up the ladder after you.

if you're 3rd string in 4 positions , you're worth more than if you were 3rd string in one position, and if you are a really serious goalkicker, you're more valuable still.

personally, i hope hughes makes it as so far he has shown the crucial elements of mental hardness and an appetite for leadership and that could take him a long way

Really good news for the Saints. Hope they all make the most of the faith shown in them by the coaching staff.
Well done lads!

Per Ardua Ad Astra

Agreed Broonie that versatility can be a big plus in the land of the salary cap. Concern for me is that the prospect of being third in the pecking order at Saints and used as a stop gap isn't much of a draw for a young player who has performed well in the Championship in his chosen position.