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Exeter Chiefs thread

Not every coach builds for 4 years, some will look for the first 2 years then maybe phase out for the RWC (like Eddie first did)
Of course they do, it's "just" a matter of degree.

For McGuigan, an uncapped 30 year old will have to be a LOT better than an uncapped 26 year old to get the nod, especially with a 70+ capped 33 year old holding down a spot whilst others integrate around him.

As far as I can see, the competition (by club) would be (age, this time next year)
Dunn (31) - capped
Stewart (21)
Thacker (29)
Singleton (27) - capped
Walker (27)
Dolly (24) - capped
McGuigan (30)
Blamire (25) - capped

I'd expect Blamire, Singleton, Dolly and Walker to all be ahead of McGuigan this time next year.
Of course, I also reserve the right to be wrong.
 
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Not every coach builds for 4 years, some will look for the first 2 years then maybe phase out for the RWC (like Eddie first did)

If McGuigan is starting for Exeter he has a big chance of playing for England with a new coach. Not like we have many alternative hookers with experience.
Im not against it for a second, George, McGuigan is a solid base and then a 3rd young option is a good way to go. I actually hope now Blarmire steps up to first choice as i did rate him and remember LCDs darts when he first started so the hooker fundamentals can improve alot.
 
But the likelihood of McGuigan becoming a key England player now is remote...so Exeter get a top class prem player who they wont lose for massive spells of the season.

Falcons squad will be changing quite a bit...its well known up here that Walder doesnt see this as "his" squad and wants to make some changes.
 
@Scotty don't forget you have Dan Frost in there too, who I really think is a quality Prem hooker. Won't make England but can hold down a sport.

Also interested to know how you thought Fislau, Feyi-Waboso and Bell got on ... saw a lot of positives around Feyi-Waboso and Fislau.
 
@Scotty don't forget you have Dan Frost in there too, who I really think is a quality Prem hooker. Won't make England but can hold down a sport.

Also interested to know how you thought Fislau, Feyi-Waboso and Bell got on ... saw a lot of positives around Feyi-Waboso and Fislau.
Actually yess forgot about him, Innard still has potential too but hasnt been that impressive yet but still young.

By all account Fislau and Waboso have gone well when played, not sure Bell if he's got any gametime yet. But its promising i hope weve tied them down for a while because we could be class young team in a couple of season.

Where was Chiefs vs Gloucester prem cup shown? I cant find highlights, anyone know?
 


Highlights from the Prem Cup game. Tuima scored a good solo effort; looked seriously fast for a man his size. Dan Frost easily scored the try of the game though; silly footwork for a front rower.
 


Highlights from the Prem Cup game. Tuima scored a good solo effort; looked seriously fast for a man his size. Dan Frost easily scored the try of the game though; silly footwork for a front rower.

Dan Frost the 16 as that was a class try? 14 Waboso? Scored a class try but seemed to get caught out defensively. Tuima did look good tbh, some good link play and looked fast for his try.

Good young talent.
 
Dan Frost the 16 as that was a class try? 14 Waboso? Scored a class try but seemed to get caught out defensively. Tuima did look good tbh, some good link play and looked fast for his try.

Good young talent.
Yep, Frost 16 and Waboso 14.

Frost looks seriously good. I rated him fairly highly while he was at Wasps but had no idea he had that kind of pace/footwork in him. Makes me a lot less concerned about LCD's departure.
Waboso is definitely raw, but just such an impressive athlete. Gas for days and a lot of power for his size. Needs to work on his fundamentals for sure but he's 19; there's plenty of time for that.
The more I see of Tuima play this season the more I like. Looks an entirely different player to his younger days. Used to be a bit of a flat-truck bully without the bully part whereas now he's dynamic and has great hands. Far more Dombrandt than Vunipola. I'd hope to see him getting rotated into the Prem side fairly regularly from here.
I also noticed that in just about every Gloucester try Fisilau was always in frame, tracking back. Serious work rate on him.

Also not really a young gun like the others but I've really liked the look of Kata every time I've seen him. Pretty one dimensional but he is ******* good at that one dimension. A very very dangerous ball carrier who I think would partner very well with Slade.
 
Yep, Frost 16 and Waboso 14.

Frost looks seriously good. I rated him fairly highly while he was at Wasps but had no idea he had that kind of pace/footwork in him. Makes me a lot less concerned about LCD's departure.
Waboso is definitely raw, but just such an impressive athlete. Gas for days and a lot of power for his size. Needs to work on his fundamentals for sure but he's 19; there's plenty of time for that.
The more I see of Tuima play this season the more I like. Looks an entirely different player to his younger days. Used to be a bit of a flat-truck bully without the bully part whereas now he's dynamic and has great hands. Far more Dombrandt than Vunipola. I'd hope to see him getting rotated into the Prem side fairly regularly from here.
I also noticed that in just about every Gloucester try Fisilau was always in frame, tracking back. Serious work rate on him.

Also not really a young gun like the others but I've really liked the look of Kata every time I've seen him. Pretty one dimensional but he is ******* good at that one dimension. A very very dangerous ball carrier who I think would partner very well with Slade.
Completely agree. Frost will perform week in week out and scored a fair number of open play tries for wasps.

Fisilau is a workhorse and will do everything for the team. Really gets about and never stops. Waboso is raw but reminds me of wade in his ability.

I miss them :(
 
How did Frost, Becconsale and Kata get on off the bench in the second half? Missed the whole second half annoyingly but keeping then to zero points in the second half and no tries is great.

Frost and Kata could bring quite abit to this team.

Seems like the young 9 getting quite abit of gametime Recently
 
Thought id bring this up here even though i mentioned it on transfers thread. Its getting silly now.
Losses for next season.
LCD
Van heerden
Kirsten
Ewers
SSimmonds
JSimmonds
Nowell

We have 2 players in Tshiunza and Jenkins that are young welsh stars, how long till they have to move to Wales?

We have 1 player in the England U20s team and he was a signing because wasps went under. So who of note have we actually got coming through?

Yes alot of cap space now but i hope we dont just buy a squad yet who is performing ready to step up.

It is just worrying tbh

Soo next season

Sio Frost Williams(is he rumoursd off?)
Jenkins Vermulen
Tuima Fisilau Tshiunza
Maunder Skinner
Kata Slade
Woodburn Hogg Hodge

Yendle
Hepburn
Schickerling
Dunne
Capstick
Maunder
Not sure?who is our 3rd choice 10?
John

Alot of young/inexperience.


Where should we spend the cap?
Who's coming through?
And what are our predictions?
 
Okay, my thoughts on the squad:

Loosehead Prop: Sio, Hepburn, Moon, Keast, Kenny, Southworth, Morris
One of the few positions where I'd say that we're pretty comfortable. Sio has been a good addition to the side and Hepburn is a more than capable back up. I'd expect Moon to retire soon; probably at the end of the season. Keast and Kenny are both okay as 3rd and 4th choice options but it would be a worry if we lost either of Sio and Hepburn and one of them had to step into the regular 23. Southworth and Kenny unlikely to amount to much IMO; neither have shown much form and neither are especially young.

Hooker: Cowan-Dickie, Yeandle, Innard, Frost, Harris, Burrows, Norey, Hocking
Hooker is another position that isn't of enormous concern. Cowan-Dickie is gone and will be missed, but Yeandle has shown that he's a solid Prem level hooker and won't look out of place as our 1st choice. Innard's darts can be shaky but he's very useful around the park; he's fine as a bench option. Frost looks really promising and I'd expect to see him leapfrog both Yeandle and Innard next season. After that, I don't expect Harris, Norey or Hocking to amount to much but Burrows is very promising. A couple of years off Prem level but I expect him to be a Welsh international in the future.

Tighthead: Williams, Schickerling, Iosefa-Scott, Street, Johnson, Richardson
Williams is strongly rumoured to be off so I'm gonna take it as a given that he's gone. Fortunately, Schickerling looks to be very promising and IMO will more than fill Williams' shoes as 1st choice. Iosefa-Scott has struggled at scrum time in the past but Baxter has slowly been reintegrating him into the side so hopefully those issues are sorted. He's a beast around the park so he should be a solid 2nd choice. Street has never really lived up to his potential but is still a fine 3rd option. Johnson and Richardson probably aren't much to talk about.

Lock: Gray, Jenkins, Dunne, Bell, Bailey, Teague
This is a serious area of concern. Obviously Gray is a solid 1st choice but I can definitely see him leaving and honestly, I'd be kinda happy if he did. He's on huge cash and IMO has never brought anywhere near his best form to the Chiefs. That, combined with him being gone for most of the year just means he isn't worth the money. After that, Jenkins is a solid 2nd choice and the sky is the limit for him. Dunne can do a job as 3rd, but after that we're in trouble. Bell has promise but is nowhere near the level yet. Bailey and Teague aren't really anything more than academy players and I don't expect either to become Prem level. We could really do with signing just a couple of really solid, Prem locks who could push for a place in the 1st XV. Hunter-Hill at Saracens and one of the Northampton locks are who I would target.

Flanker: Ewers, Vermeulen, Tshiunza, Grondona, Capstick, Kirsten, Pearson, Davis
Ewers will be a huge loss as 1st choice. There isn't really anyone else in the Prem who can do quite what he does. But regardless, flanker isn't an area of concern IMO. Vermeulen-Tshiunza is still a top drawer pairing, and Grondona and Capstick are both very solid back ups. Kirsten is off, but Pearson has never looked out of place in his (albeit limited) game time. Davis can go though, he's been a waste of a signing.

Number 8: Simmonds, Fisilau, Tuima, Leatherbarrow, Grubb
Like Ewers, Simmonds will be a big loss. Fisilau is a very promising youngster but he's not quite Prem ready yet IMO. However, Tuima is showing more promise than ever before and IMO will be a solid 2nd choice. Leatherbarrow and Grubb are both very young and TBH it's hard to tell how they'll turn out. Leatherbarrow is the more promising of the two, and honestly I could see him becoming a Prem regular or fading into obscurity. It's really hard to tell.

A summary:
Italicised means they're a proising young option but not ready for Prem yet.
Brackets means they're either super young academy or I just don't really see them ever being Prem options.

LP: Sio, Hepburn, Keast/Kenny (Keast/Kenny, Southworth, Morris)
HK: Yeandle, Innard, Frost, Burrows (Harris, Norey, Hocking)
TP: Schickerling, Iosefa-Scott, Street (Johnson, Richardson)
LK: Gray, Jenkins, Dunne, another, another, Bell (Bailey, Teague)
FL: Vermeulen, Tshiunza, Grondona, Capstick, Pearson (Davis)
N8: Fisilau, Tuima (Leatherbarrow, Grubb)

Overall, a pack of:
1. Sio 2. Yeandle 3. Schickerling
4. Jenkins 5. Gray
6. Vermeulen 7. Tshiunza 8. Fisilau

16. Innard 17. Hepburn 18. Iosefa-Scott
19. Dunne 20. Grondona

It's really not that bad. Sign a couple of decent locks (which we definitely now have the cap space for) and we're sorted. We're not gonna be topping the table, but I can still see us being serious mid-table contenders. And from there, as the cap increases, we continue to build back up. It's far from the doom and gloom that it's made out to be.

I may do backs later, I may not. But there isn't as much disruption there besides losing Simmonds so I don't think it really justifies a whole post.
 
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Okay, my thoughts on the squad:

Loosehead Prop: Sio, Hepburn, Moon, Keast, Kenny, Southworth, Morris
One of the few positions where I'd say that we're pretty comfortable. Sio has been a good addition to the side and Hepburn is a more than capable back up. I'd expect Moon to retire soon; probably at the end of the season. Keast and Kenny are both okay as 3rd and 4th choice options but it would be a worry if we lost either of Sio and Hepburn and one of them had to step into the regular 23. Southworth and Kenny unlikely to amount to much IMO; neither have shown much form and neither are especially young.

Hooker: Cowan-Dickie, Yeandle, Innard, Frost, Harris, Burrows, Norey, Hocking
Hooker is another position that isn't of enormous concern. Cowan-Dickie is gone and will be missed, but Yeandle has shown that he's a solid Prem level hooker and won't look out of place as our 1st choice. Innard's darts can be shaky but he's very useful around the park; he's fine as a bench option. Frost looks really promising and I'd expect to see him leapfrog both Yeandle and Innard next season. After that, I don't expect Harris, Norey or Hocking to amount to much but Burrows is very promising. A couple of years off Prem level but I expect him to be a Welsh international in the future.

Tighthead: Williams, Schickerling, Iosefa-Scott, Street, Johnson, Richardson
Williams is strongly rumoured to be off so I'm gonna take it as a given that he's gone. Fortunately, Schickerling looks to be very promising and IMO will more than fill Williams' shoes as 1st choice. Iosefa-Scott has struggled at scrum time in the past but Baxter has slowly been reintegrating him into the side so hopefully those issues are sorted. He's a beast around the park so he should be a solid 2nd choice. Street has never really lived up to his potential but is still a fine 3rd option. Johnson and Richardson probably aren't much to talk about.

Lock: Gray, Jenkins, Dunne, Bell, Bailey, Teague
This is a serious area of concern. Obviously Gray is a solid 1st choice but I can definitely see him leaving and honestly, I'd be kinda happy if he did. He's on huge cash and IMO has never brought anywhere near his best form to the Chiefs. That, combined with him being gone for most of the year just means he isn't worth the money. After that, Jenkins is a solid 2nd choice and the sky is the limit for him. Dunne can do a job as 3rd, but after that we're in trouble. Bell has promise but is nowhere near the level yet. Bailey and Teague aren't really anything more than academy players and I don't expect either to become Prem level. We could really do with signing just a couple of really solid, Prem locks who could push for a place in the 1st XV. Hunter-Hill at Saracens and one of the Northampton locks are who I would target.

Flanker: Ewers, Vermeulen, Tshiunza, Grondona, Capstick, Kirsten, Pearson, Davis
Ewers will be a huge loss as 1st choice. There isn't really anyone else in the Prem who can do quite what he does. But regardless, flanker isn't an area of concern IMO. Vermeulen-Tshiunza is still a top drawer pairing, and Grondona and Capstick are both very solid back ups. Kirsten is off, but Pearson has never looked out of place in his (albeit limited) game time. Davis can go though, he's been a waste of a signing.

Number 8: Simmonds, Fisilau, Tuima, Leatherbarrow, Grubb
Like Ewers, Simmonds will be a big loss. Fisilau is a very promising youngster but he's not quite Prem ready yet IMO. However, Tuima is showing more promise than ever before and IMO will be a solid 2nd choice. Leatherbarrow and Grubb are both very young and TBH it's hard to tell how they'll turn out. Leatherbarrow is the more promising of the two, and honestly I could see him becoming a Prem regular or fading into obscurity. It's really hard to tell.

A summary:
Italicised means they're a proising young option but not ready for Prem yet.
Brackets means they're either super young academy or I just don't really see them ever being Prem options.

LP: Sio, Hepburn, Keast, (Kenny, Southworth, Morris)
HK: Yeandle, Innard, Frost, Burrows (Harris, Norey, Hocking)
TP: Schickerling, Iosefa-Scott, Street (Johnson, Richardson)
LK: Gray, Jenkins, Dunne, another, another, Bell (Bailey, Teague)
FL: Vermeulen, Tshiunza, Grondona, Capstick, Pearson (Davis)
N8: Fisilau, Tuima (Leatherbarrow, Grubb)

Overall, a pack of:
1. Sio 2. Yeandle 3. Schickerling
4. Jenkins 5. Gray
6. Vermeulen 7. Tshiunza 8. Fisilau

16. Innard 17. Hepburn 18. Iosefa-Scott
19. Dunne 20. Grondona

It's really not that bad. Sign a couple of decent locks (which we definitely now have the cap space for) and we're sorted. We're not gonna be topping the table, but I can still see us being serious mid-table contenders. And from there, as the cap increases, we continue to build back up. It's far from the doom and gloom that it's made out to be.

I may do backs later, I may not. But there isn't as much disruption there besides losing Simmonds so I don't think it really justifies a whole post.
This is kind of my point though, we arnt in a bad place but we will be in a mid table battle at best with next to no depth, this 6N will be quite a good indicator to where this team is at but its worrying.
 
How heavily is Tony Rowe involved in Exeter these days?

Ex. were very much his baby, as was all the Native American iconography. But he seems to be ever-less visible these days - no longer ***le sponsor, buying assets back from the club etc etc. It seems odd that the principal financier, and attention seeker, is keeping such a low profile as finances seem concerning.
 
So now with Cordero leaving has anyone got the full list?

Front row - LCD Williams
Second Row - Kirsten van heerden
Back row - Ewers SSimmonds Grondona
Half backs - JSimmonds
Centres
Back three - Nowell Cordero

Have i missed anyone?

As it stands next season what will be our strongest 23?. With injuries and internstionals available.
 
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So now with Cordero leaving has anyone got the full list?

Front row - LCD Williams
Second Row - Kirsten
Back row - Ewers SSimmonds
Half backs - JSimmonds
Centres
Back three - Nowell Cordero

Have i missed anyone?

As it stands next season what will be our strongest 23?. With injuries and internstionals available.
Ruben van Heerden, Santiago Grondona.
 
Updated the list but what will our best 23 look like? Because as it stands im not convinced it will be that good.
Suddenly getting Frost, Bell, Fisalau and Feyi-Waboso for small contracts must be a saving factor. Clearly Baxter has a plan but its some serious turnover.
 

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