Australia vs England - 3 Tests - June 2016

[Which Tyler]

Or Bath, ideally placed if he is still going to Cardiff Uni and I think Louw is off soon so we will need a new 7.

This. From all accounts Underhill loves Uni at Cardiff; so he'll need to be somewhere within a relatively easy commute.
Which means Bath (an extra 20 minutes away than Swansea) Gloucester (about the same) or Worcester (about 15 minutes further).

Of those, his ambition should be too high for Worcester; then Bath are likely to A] offer the better wage; and B] offer the best fit into the existing team.
Louw turns 31 this summer; and is getting massively overplayed every year; there's only so long he can go on like this. Bath desperately need a better back-up than Mercer, and also like to buy young English players from other clubs; whilst having no obvious 7s in their academy. I could very easily see a deal whereby Underhill stays with the Ospreys for another year; but is signed to Bath for the 2017-18 season; just coinciding with his final year at Uni. His O's contract shouldn't be too big a hurdle; as A] Bath don't really care about contracts; B] by my understanding, he's contracted to one of their feeder clubs; not to the O's themselves, so the contract is likely to be smaller; and C] Even if that's wrong; don't the Welsh clubs have a non-WQP limit on them? in which case, is the backup OSF really the best use of that quota?


Of course, it's also distinctly possible that Houston (likely) and/or Fa'osaliva (unlikely) leave the club in the next few weeks - which could easily put Bath straight into the market for needing another backrower ASAP.

 

[LeinsterMan (NotTigsMan)]

Hope Underhill doesn't go Glous I want him to play for England.

Bath IMO are prime targets I guess. Although lack of Champions cup might put him off an move this season.

Depends on what he does.

If he leaves now I would say Saracens would prob be the team most likely.

IF he stays in Wales another 2 years then I would say
Bath and Wasps (Louw and if Chubby Armitage goes there) will be coming to an end in terms of career and both can flash the cash.

Whilst I would love him at Tigers Evans is looking promising so would be fine if him.

 

[Don't Skip Leg Day]

We'll have him at saints and make him a 6.5 or never play him at 7. That's what we do with all our back rows.

 

[TRF_Olyy]

Salvi will be packing it in at Chiefs, as well.

 

[LeinsterMan (NotTigsMan)]

Salvi will be packing it in at Chiefs, as well.

Yeh now that would be a good fit.

Will be needing a 8 soonish as well.

6) Ewers
7) Underhill

 

[NickBD]

So no Marler going on Australia tour.

He expected to miss England's summer tour to Australia in June and said head coach Eddie Jones told him to "wind his neck in".

"I didn't think I'd play again this season," said Marler. "I thought I'd be having the summer off as well.

"I'm very lucky to be in a position to pull on the shirt for Quins again and even luckier that it's a final and a chance to get hands on a trophy."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/36263272

 

[Geordie]

Now that you say that we do seem to be the only team in the top 6 without an out and out 8.

Ah don't worry...we are blooding 2 new back rowers next season...Harrison Orr and in particular the Kenyan nightmare....Josh Chisanga. We'll blood them up just nicely for you to come and take them off us the following season. Then you'll have Calum Chick the England U20 captain and No.8 ready for the next few seasons....

 

[LeinsterMan (NotTigsMan)]

Ah don't worry...we are blooding 2 new back rowers next season...Harrison Orr and in particular the Kenyan nightmare....Josh Chisanga. We'll blood them up just nicely for you to come and take them off us the following season. Then you'll have Calum Chick the England U20 captain and No.8 ready for the next few seasons....

Well that's what feeder clubs are for.

 

[brokenoses]

Yeh now that would be a good fit.

Will be needing a 8 soonish as well.

6) Ewers
7) Underhill

As well as his age, Waldrom's relatively narrow strengths would be rendered a bit obsolete with Ewers and Underhill alongside him. Don Armand at 8 would balance that backrow out nicely. Pacey, athletic, mobile, lineout jumper, and runs the wide channels in Kieran Read style. It would mean Underhill studying at Exeter which seems unlikely given what he has said before about staying at Cardiff but who knows. Would be great for Exeter at any rate.

 

[johnmac99]

So no Marler going on Australia tour.



http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/36263272

I think that's what he feared, not what's going to happen.

He's been picked for the Training camp next week, so he's still in contention for Australia.

 

[TRF_Olyy]

It would mean Underhill studying at Exeter which seems unlikely given what he has said before about staying at Cardiff but who knows. Would be great for Exeter at any rate.

I'm pretty sure he said he's not leaving his ospreys contract early, and that expires as his degree ends, so this is all two years down the line anyway

 

[j'nuh]

I'm pretty sure he said he's not leaving his ospreys contract early, and that expires as his degree ends, so this is all two years down the line anyway

But Jones is saying that he sees himself being able to select Underhill within the next 6 months. You reckon they're trying to sort it out so the rules change to allow him to play for England despite being at Ospreys?

 

[Peat]

But Jones is saying that he sees himself being able to select Underhill within the next 6 months. You reckon they're trying to sort it out so the rules change to allow him to play for England despite being at Ospreys?

That would seem a likely conclusion to me.

 

[TRF_Olyy]

Yeah, Jones said before he wants to do that, it's just getting the Premiership clubs to agree on it (apparently they all have to).

 

[TommiG88]

So a young u20 England and Quins prop died today. Such a shame.

 

[Duck a l'Orange]

So a young u20 England and Quins prop died today. Such a shame.

Seb Adiran-Olule.

Car accident. Didn't another young rugby player die in a car crash recently?

Twenty year olds are twenty year olds I suppose. Tragic all the same.

 

[johnmac99]

Yeah, Jones said before he wants to do that, it's just getting the Premiership clubs to agree on it (apparently they all have to).

Now Ian Ritchie says England are keen to solve Sam Underhill selection issue -

http://www.skysports.com/rugby-unio...am-underhill-selection-issue-says-ian-ritchie

No tours for him then?

 

[Tmartin995]

Joe Simpson's been named in the training squad for the Olympic 7s, so he won't be touring

http://www.englandrugby.com/news/sevens-name-training-squad/

 

[TRF_Olyy]

Surprised they've not included Wade in the training squad, with that amount of space he'd be lethal.
Also might shut people up about Carlin Isles.
That said OLH and Watson both have a more/more recent 7s experience. Looks like they included Simpson as they want a specialist scrumhalf and he has the speed/broken field running for 7s. Be interesting to see if he makes the cut.

 

[LeinsterMan (NotTigsMan)]

Surprised they've not included Wade in the training squad, with that amount of space he'd be lethal.
Also might shut people up about Carlin Isles.
That said OLH and Watson both have a more/more recent 7s experience. Looks like they included Simpson as they want a specialist scrumhalf and he has the speed/broken field running for 7s. Be interesting to see if he makes the cut.

Suggest to me that Wade has a future with England XV's, Simpson not so much.