NH club rugby
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Boudjellal reveals leaving date as Toulon soap saga takes fresh twist
Let’s start with the big one: Owner Mourad Boudjellal has revealed he will leave the club … in just over four years.And they begin – in honest-to-goodness daytime soap-style – with a mass character cull. The 2018/19 has been, in Boudjellal’s own words, ‘a saison de merde’ – and he warned fans to expect to wade through more merde to come as the club realigns itself. He has promised major changes in personnel coming soon to a screen near you, with between 12 and 15 arrivals and numerous departures in the pipeline ahead of next season – with some major announcements in the weeks to come. “It’s time to bid farewell to guys who may not have been European champions. That way, we can stop talking about the past, stop comparing. I’m going on a new project. In the coming weeks, there will be many announcements in both directions.” Eight of those 12 to 15 arrivals have already been confirmed, headlined by Eben Etzebeth, Nehe Milner-Skudder and Baptiste Serin. Importantly, for French player-quota regulations as much as Boudjellal’s ‘new project’, five are French. Six are under 25 and none are over 30. Meanwhile, so far, seven players’ contracts have been renewed. None of this batch of players, which includes Anthony Belleau and Louis Carbonel, are over 25. Five are French. Montpellier-bound 32-year-old Guilhem Guirado is the big departure after five years at the club, while Malakai Fekitoa is on his way to Wasps. To date, five players are known to be leaving at the end of the season. Apart from Georgian academy hooker Badri Alkhazashvili, all are over 25. And, looking to Boudjellal’s ‘new project’: Juandre Kruger, Mamuka Gorgodze, Francois Trinh-Duc, and JP Pietersen are among seven players at the end of their contracts. Some may get new deals but the trend appears to be for younger players. Boudjellal’s comments also suggest the club is willing to do a Stade Francais, and agree terms to cut loose other players who are not yet in the final year of their current deals.The youth factor was lost in the headlines when Etzebeth and Milner-Skudder were revealed as future Toulon players in December. A new centre will be developed to replace the prefabs sprouting all over the training ground at Berg. It will be operational by 2020. The idea is to build what the club and Boudjellal have billed as a “factory of champions”.“Not a single talent from the region should escape us,” the president said at a special meeting to unveil the plans in December. “We want a reference system and standards for all youth teams with the RCT label. With the desire to put players at the centre of the system but also to promote in-house training for educators,” added Laurent Emmanuelli, head of sports policy at the club. (...) “The RCT must regain a strong identity that encompasses everyone from mini rugby to pros, but also alumni. The sports project will be based on a team built with players from the training centre and the region, but also with the possibility of seeking skills with a margin of progress in the Top 14 or Pro D2. “And finally, foreigners who bring real added value”. Boudjellal has spoken of his ‘Made in France’ vision of Toulon’s future previously. But this was the first concrete development towards that future. In it, big-name overseas stars have been reduced to third in the list of priorities, behind local, then French players.
Boudjellal reveals leaving date as Toulon soap saga takes fresh twist
Toulon boss Mourad Boudjellal reveals when he'll quit club but promises fireworks before he goes - including a sizeable player cull in the weeks ahead
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yew! Marketing we can get behind!
And, dear readers, because i like you to be fully informed, i have checked out said site, and it appears to be a hosting site for lots of amateur photos and videos. Some of the contributors are, well, not the most attractive. Probably best avoided to be fair.
But, at least they like rugby
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You don't frighten us, English pig-dog! Go and boil your bottoms, son of a silly person. ** I blow my nose on you, ** so-called Arthur-king, you and your silly English K...kaniggets
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https://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=12206146
Classy from the Toulon coach. I guess someone from the club had to be
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@canefan said in NH club rugby:
Classy from the Toulon coach. I guess someone from the club had to be
The thing is, it's not like they have any better options. He is still performing better then the guys behind him who are journeymen at best.
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@mooshld said in NH club rugby:
@canefan said in NH club rugby:
Classy from the Toulon coach. I guess someone from the club had to be
The thing is, it's not like they have any better options. He is still performing better then the guys behind him who are journeymen at best.
Which makes the owner's criticisms seem even more unfair
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@canefan said in NH club rugby:
@mooshld said in NH club rugby:
@canefan said in NH club rugby:
Classy from the Toulon coach. I guess someone from the club had to be
The thing is, it's not like they have any better options. He is still performing better then the guys behind him who are journeymen at best.
Which makes the owner's criticisms seem even more unfair
I wouldn't say they are unfair. A turd sandwhich is still a turd sandwhich. And this one is probably on 3 or 4 times the salary of the others.
I liken it to my role as a consultant. I am probably on a similar multiplier for my job compared to internal employees. So the expectation for me to be better then them is higher.
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Dan Carter's big money deal back to Racing Paris has fallen through. He has failed the medical.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=12208967
What went wrong? Did he fail a DNA test?
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@sparky said in NH club rugby:
Dan Carter's big money deal back to Racing Paris has fallen through. He has failed the medical.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=12208967
What went wrong? Did he fail a DNA test?
I love the translated French bitch fight in the stiry.
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According to Le Parisien, Carter "suffers from a cervical spine problem" that prohibits him from re-joining as per the regulations in French rugby. Sport24 reported Carter's neck issue is similar to that of Saracens' French prop Christopher Tolofua, who last year had his contract with Toulon canceled last minute when his cervical spine was classified G3 following medical examinations. The legislation is different in other countries, allowing Carter and Tolofua to continue playing in Japan and England, respectively. -
Rob Penney is stepping down from his role as head coach at NTT Communications Shining Arcs (Japan). There's no information about his future plans in the article below.
Rugby: Head coach Penney steps down after 5 seasons with Shining Arcs
NTT Communications Shining Arcs' Rob Penney will step down from his role as head coach after five seasons with the Japan Rugby Top League team.
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@Stargazer said in NH club rugby:
Rob Penney is stepping down from his role as head coach at NTT Communications Shining Arcs (Japan). There's no information about his future plans in the article below.
Rugby: Head coach Penney steps down after 5 seasons with Shining Arcs
NTT Communications Shining Arcs' Rob Penney will step down from his role as head coach after five seasons with the Japan Rugby Top League team.
Not too familiar with his work in Japan, but given the location of the RWC later in the year there should be nations falling over themselves to get him in their backroom on a short term deal - for local knowledge if nothing else.
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Too bad, they have updated the article. It now includes this:
Penney is set to become the head coach of Toyota Industries Shuttles, who were demoted to the second tier Top Challenge League after finishing 15th in the Top League last season, a source told Kyodo News. Toyota Industries announced last month that they have parted ways with head coach Leon Holden. -
@Stargazer said in NH club rugby:
Too bad, they have updated the article. It now includes this:
Penney is set to become the head coach of Toyota Industries Shuttles, who were demoted to the second tier Top Challenge League after finishing 15th in the Top League last season, a source told Kyodo News. Toyota Industries announced last month that they have parted ways with head coach Leon Holden.Interesting... I've mentioned it a couple of times but both divisions of the league are on hiatus until late Jan 2020. Without knowing what the preseason looks like for these guys and how flexible Japanese ownership is (seem to have been with our players thus far?) but there still might be an opportunity to second some of the Japan based coaches - particularly could be helpful for some of the tier two nations.
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Porn website sponsors French rugby match, ticket sales soar
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