Sireli has a year to remember with Chiefs

Posted on May 25, 2011 in Latest Rugby News

Sireli Naqelevuki insists his first year in English rugby has already allowed him to add new skills to his game – and he hopes to add even more when Exeter Chiefs return to Aviva Premiership action again in a few months.

Brought to Devon in late September from South African Super 15 franchise the Stormers, Naqelevuki has wasted little time in establishing himself as a key weapon within the Chiefs attacking arsenal.

The 30-year-old featured 18 times last season for Rob Baxter’s side, scoring five tries in the process. And one of those touchdowns – his effort in the home game against Northampton Saints – will be among six shortlisted at Wednesday night’s RPA Annual Awards night in London.

"It has been a really good season for me and for the Chiefs," said Naqelevuki ahead of his trip to the capital. "We’ve had some good wins, especially against the likes of Saracens, Northampton and Wasps, and we’ve had some really good performances as well.

"Playing in the Premiership is a good challenge and one which I’ve really enjoyed. It’s hard and it’s physical and there isn’t so much room as when I was playing in South Africa, but I definitely think I’ve added new things to my game since I came to Exeter.

"Moving position from wing to centre, I definitely get a lot more ball carries and I’m involved a lot more in the game, which is good. Also my defending has improved a lot as well because you need to be strong in the middle."

Naqelevuki has praised the input he has already received from the Exeter coaching staff, but says that with a full pre-season behind him he will return next season even stronger.

"I’m looking forward to working with the coaches again," he said. "Ali [Hepher] and Ricky [Pellow] have done a lot of work with me this year, but I think next season will be even better because I will know a lot more and I will be here right from the start of the season."

Although Naqelevuki is a little self-critical in the fact that it may have taken him a few weeks to get totally up to speed in terms of the English game – come the close of the campaign Premiership defences were certainly well versed in the threat posed by the Suva-born back.

"I felt more and more comfortable as the season went on," said Naqelevuki. "The boys here are awesome. Everyone helps each other out, both on and off the field, and I feel very settled here.

"The team you could see were getting better and better as the season went on. Our forwards are very good, they’re strong, they’re mobile and they work hard for each other. As a back it’s nice to play behind a pack that works so hard."

So with Naqelevuki set for a little down time over the coming weeks, the Fijian force is set to use the pre-season break as the ideal opportunity to recharge his batteries ahead of another big season for the Chiefs.

Brown given green light to Knights

Posted on May 24, 2011 in Latest Rugby News

Brett Davey continues his march towards a full squad for the RFU Championship 2011-12 season with the signing of Saracen’s Alex Brown. The Knights’ Director of rugby has his squad target in sight now after working constantly since the end of season to bring a team together.

22 year old Prop brown joins a formidable looking Knights front row from the Aviva Premiership club , a club that he has been at since July 2009.

The 5’11” 18 stone 4 Prop made his debut for the Saracens against Rovigo in October 2009, an Amlin Cup victory at Vicarage road after several impressive appearances for Saracens Storm in the A League.

The England U16, U18 and former Blackheath front rower, came on as a second half replacement after earning his chance with a number of good performances for the Saracens Storm.

Brett Davey gave us this comment “Alex is another player I have a lot of belief in, belief in his attitude not just his ability on the pitch. You look at what Alex can bring to a game and balance it with the likes of Stuart Corsar, Andy Brown and Royce Burke Flynn and you have options during a game. While Stuart and Royce have a higher level of experience Alex and Andy Brown bring an enthusiasm and determination that gives you a confidence in them”.

Hill calls for focus on one last game

Posted on May 17, 2011 in Latest Rugby News

Head Coach Richard Hill has called on his Worcester Warriors to hit the floor running in the second leg of the RFU Championship final – and concentrate on winning the one-off game with Cornish Pirates.

Worcester take a nine-point lead into the sell-out televised encounter at Sixways tomorrow (Wednesday) after claiming a hard-fought 21-12 win in Penzance last week.

Hill is aware that fired-up Cornish Pirates will arrive keen to wipe out that advantage as soon as possible.

However, he has called on his Warriors to rise to the challenge, to repeat the impressive start they produced at the Mennaye Field, and put any thoughts of promotion to the back of their mind.

“There is no talk of the lead,” he said. “We are not talking about promotion or the nine points. This about one game and that is the beauty of winning the first tie.

“We haven’t got to fuss about anything else. The task is now clear and we have got to win the game.

“It was critical to get the win in the first leg. If you are coming back and you have lost by a point or two points then a lot of tactics start going through your head about kicking goals, kicking for corners or drop goals, you panic about conceding early points.

“The massive task was to go to Cornwall and win because that means here is just a normal game and we have to win.

Hill also insists the mood inside the camp is good and the squad are not feeling the pressure ahead of the big kick-off.

“There is no pressure on us,” he said. “We are very cool and very calm about it. I expect us to be ruthless and we want to win and put a performance in.

“We didn’t play anything like how we can play as a team last Wednesday. It was an ugly win and we did what we needed to do to win 21-12. We have got a huge amount to come if we really click.”

Roses rivalry as strong as ever at Fylde

Posted on May 12, 2011 in Latest Rugby News

Having lost to Cheshire in successive seasons, Yorkshire now need to repeat last season’s win in the Roses match to stave off the threat of relegation from the Bill Beaumont Cup.

Even a win at Fylde on Saturday would not guarantee that objective, but another reverse would leave the White Rose side in a very precarious situation.

Survival was Lancashire coach Mark Nelson primary objective when his side opened the defence of their title last weekend at Sedgley Park and they got themselves over that initial hurdle with a 46-12 demolition of visitors Warwickshire, who went behind in the opening minutes and never looked capable of rescuing the situation.

Despite that win, Nelson will still be wary of his Roses rivals, who have their backs to the wall and are sure to come out fighting for their place in the top tier of the County Championship they have always treasured.

“As always, Yorkshire will be a tough nut to crack and they clearly have some talented players,” said Nelson: “They will be keen to bounce back from last week’s defeat, so we can’t afford to sit back. We have to show Yorkshire the respect they deserve, but we also have to be positive and impose ourselves on the game.

“Roses matches in any sport have a special place in the English sporting calendar and whenever Lancashire and Yorkshire meet, both sides crank it up a couple of notches. That’s what we’re expecting on Saturday.”

Lancashire have six changes to the starting lineout from last week’s game, with three Sedgley Park players now available and an injury to Fylde and England Counties centre Mike Waywell bringing Chris Briers into the threequarter line from full-back.

Yorkshire also shuffle their resources and have seven new faces in their starting lineup, including England Counties pair Steve Parsons and Kyle Dench, while skipper Dan Cook resumes at lock after standing down last weekend with an injury.

“Both Mark Nelson and I come from a tradition in which the County Championship is very important and we are doing all we can to maintain this.” Said Yorkshire Lead Coach Bob Hood: “We were disappointed with the accuracy of our play against Cheshire and now Saturday’s game is a must win for us and not just because we want to get to the Twickenham Final. We have to stay in this division to be true to our traditions and we will all be doing our utmost to maintain that status.”

Lancashire will also be keeping a close eye on neighbours Cheshire, who fulfilled all the optimistic hopes held by their Joint Team Manager David Partington with their winning performance at Abbeydale.

Like the Red Rose men, Cheshire now face a team that will still be smarting after their humbling at Sedgley Park and on home turf at Coventry’s Butts Park Areana, the Warwickshire side can be expected to raise their game.

Cheshire make a sprinkling of changes, with England Counties XV wingman Fergus Mulchrone coming in at full-back and Danny Carlton taking the scrum-half berth. There is also a new-look back-row, where coach John Sewell comes in at No 8 alongside another newcomer, Ryan McKibbin.

“We have a few changes, as you always have at this time of year, but we have good men coming in,” says Partington: “Fergus Mulchrone is a passionate county player and it’s good to see him involved, while Danny Carlton is a quality player coming in at scrum-half because Manchester don’t want to deny him the chance even though they have a league game.

“I imagine Warwickshire will have targeted this game as the most winnable, but if we do what we do and do it properly, that should be enough.”

Warwickshire coach Pete Glackin has promised an improvement and believes that there is better to come from his team.

“Our set piece didn’t function as well as we would have liked and we let in some soft tries,” he said: “The players were disappointed with the performance, but we now know the areas that we need to improve on. We are going to work hard in training this week and with some of the players that we will hopefully have coming in we are going to get stronger and better.”

Northumberland have the incentive of a return to the Bill Beaumont Premier Division next season if they can get a win over Eastern Counties at Shelford RFC near Cambridge. They show nine changes in the squad as a result of injuries and unavailability.

An additional consequence of victory would be that Northumberland will have home advantage in the Pool 2 final.

Cumbria will be looking to build on their 46-17 opening day success against Staffordshire at Burton when they entertain Notts, Lincs & Derbyshire at Penrith in the County Championship Shield Pool One decider.

NLD faced selection difficulties for their opening match against Staffordshire at Newark because of club commitments but hope they will have eased for their trip to Winters Park.

Lancashire (v Yorkshire at Fylde RFC, 3pm): Chris Johnson (Huddersfield); Tom Hughes (Preston GH), Chris Briers (Doncaster), Matt Riley (Sedgley Park), Oliver Brennand (Fylde); Alex Davies (Plymouth Albion), Steve Collins (Fylde); Danny Birchall (Sedgley Park), Alex Loney (Rotherham) capt, Peter Altham (Fylde), Louis McGowan (Rotherham), Gaz Rawlings (Longton), Jan Crous (Sedgley Park), Steve McGinnis (Fylde), Sam Beaumont (Fylde).

Replacements: Mark Rylance (Caldy), Simon Griffiths (Liverpool St Helens), Paul Arnold (Fylde), Matt Charters (Preston Grasshoppers), Grant Ferguson (Fylde), Adam Armstrong (Barking).

Yorkshire: Chris Georgiou (Otley); Steve Parsons (Rosslyn Park), Jamie Broadley (Harrogate), Kyle Dench (Harrogate), Curtis Wilson (Otley); Richard Vasey (Caldy), Tom Barrett (Wharfedale), Craig Hampson (Leeds Carnegie); Jimmy Browne (Harrogate), Harry Hannam (Leeds Carnegie), Chris Steel (Wharfedale), Dan Cook (Hull) capt, Alex Ball (Birmingham Solihull), Gavin Jones (Blaydon), Dan Salomi (Wharfedale), Rob Baldwin (Wharfedale).

Replacements: Joe Quinn (Otley), Ben Sowery (Wharfedale), Paul Turner (Cleckheaton), Seoni Onesi (Hull), Richard Wainwright (Sedgley Park), Joel Gill (Otley), Alex Black (Leeds Carnegie).

Northumberland (v Eastern Counties at Shelford RFC): Hamish Smales (Tynedale); Andrew Shell (Alnwick), Harry Mountain (Team Northumbria), Tom Bramwell (Tynedale), Peter Moralee (Alnwick); Ashley Smith (Percy Park), Harry Peck (Tynedale); Douglas Jupp (Tynedale), Matty Hall (Blaydon) capt, Matt Shields (Tynedale), Richard Boyle (Tynedale), Craig Fidler (Percy Prk), Keith Laughlin (Blaydon), Jason Smithson (Blaydon), Sam Shires (Tynedale).

Replacements: Fred Burden (Cambridge Un), John Scott (Percy Park) Peter Southern (Tynedale), Andrew Dunn (Percy Park), Alex Westgarth (Gosforth), John Stephenson (Beverley), Greg Dixon (Percy Park).

Cheshire (v Warwickshire at Coventry, 3pm): Fergus Mulchrone (unattached); Dave Williamson (Lymm), Tom Bray (Lymm), Jamie Anthony (Stockport), Ed Stobart (Sale Jets); Tom Foden (B’ham Solihull), Danny Carlton (Manchester); Gavin Woods (Caldy), Tom Cruse (Stockport), Martin Kent (Coventry), Paul Ralph (Stockport), Dave Marwick (Stockport) capt, Adam Bray (Lymm), Ryan McKibbin (Northwich), Jon Sewell (Caldy).

Replacements: Adam Kettle (unattached), Ross Harrison (Lymm), Derek Salisbury (Caldy), Tommy Taylor (Sale Jets), Tom Holmes (Sedgeley Park), Tom Holloway (Waterloo), Peter Hodgkinson (Ealing)

Bill Beaumont Cup

Pool 1 North

May 7: Lancashire 46 Warwickshire 12 at Sedgley Park, Yorkshire 10 Cheshire 18 at Sheffield RUFC; May 14: Lancashire v Yorkshire at Fylde (3pm), Warwickshire v Cheshire at Coventry (3pm); May 21: Cheshire v Lancashire at Macclesfield (3pm), Yorkshire v Warwickshire at Hull (3pm).

Pool 2 North

May 7: Northumberland 24 Durham 19 at Tynedale; May 14: Eastern Counties v Northumberland at Shelford (3pm); May 21: Durham v Eastern Counties at Hartlepool Rovers (3pm).

County Championship Shield

Pool 1

May 7: Staffordshire 17 Cumbria 48 at Burton on Trent; May 14: Cumbria v Notts, Lincs & Derbyshire at Penrith (3pm).

Balshaw backs Martyn Williams

Posted on May 11, 2011 in Latest Rugby News

Martyn Williams will line-up against his home country for the first time in his illustrious career when he takes to the field for the Barbarians at the Millennium Stadium on Saturday 4^th June and he has received backing from an unlikely source – new team-mate and one time foe Iain Balshaw.

The Biarritz wing and former England international, who received a Rugby World Cup winner’s medal after representing his country at the 2003 tournament, will also feature for the Baa-Baas and is no stranger himself to the challenge of playing against his former international colleagues.

Balshaw has faced England twice at Twickenham on Baa-Baas duty, winning on both occasions (14-17) in 2008 and 26-35 a year later, and he says the 98-times capped Williams will thrive on the unique experience of turning up in the away changing room at the Millennium Stadium to face Wales.

“It’s going to be a great day for him, I’ve played against England a couple of times and I enjoyed every minute of it,” said Balshaw.

“You are playing against your national team, against guys and structures you know and it adds a whole different dimension to the game.  I just know he is going to go out and give it his all in front of his home fans.

“It’s going to be huge.  Playing Wales in Wales always is.  We know it’s going to be tough but hopefully we can celebrate the best of rugby and help the Welsh guys prepare for World Cup.

“It’s a big game for them.  It’s going to be a stepping stone in their preparations for later this year and they will be trying out combinations and sequences that are key to their progression.

“It’s a good opportunity for them to test their players and see exactly where they are before the competition, but they are going to be facing a side packed with internationals.”

And Balshaw, whose team-mates alongside Williams will include Sergio Parisse, Ruan Pienaar, Carl Hayman and Francois Steyn, is particularly looking forward the Millennium Stadium experience himself.

The game is being staged to celebrate 130 years of the Welsh Rugby Union, which gives it an added edge as full caps are being awarded to new Wales captain Sam Warburton and his teammates.

“For me I can’t wait for the game and to be part of the Barbarians team again – it’s every rugby players dream,” he said.

“It’s a fantastic brand with great history so it’s fitting we help celebrate the history of Welsh rugby.

“Rugby in Wales is steeped in history and they have always played a different style of rugby compared to the home nations.  They play an attacking style that really stands out and you have to admire that.

“They have always had world class individuals so to help mark the occasion is going to be honour for us.

“I can’t wait for the game, it’s going to be a massive challenge but as an Englishman I’m going there to win.

“Playing down in Cardiff is a big deal and I want us to come away with the victory – that is our target.

“We are all very proud players who don’t want to let ourselves and the Barbarians down.

The Millennium Stadium boasts fond memories for Balshaw as it was the scene of his first start for England in 2001 and he is looking forward to returning to the Welsh capital and ‘one of the greatest stadiums in the world.’

“It’s going to be great going back to the Millennium Stadium,” he added.

“It is widely regarded in rugby circles as one of the greatest stadiums in the world and rightly so.

“The atmosphere there is second to none, the Welsh are such a proud rugby nation who take their rugby very seriously and certainly make themselves known.

“It’s a cracking place to play and on match day the atmosphere will be electric.

“The Barbarians have some of the World’s best players who will be looking to play an attacking style and the Welsh public appreciate that.