Quote:Dave1
Sad to see mo go.
Personally would like to see quality backrower come in. Easter is not getting any younger, and apart from Robshaw the rest are reletively inexperienced (Wallace maybe an exception but still very young).
They're not that inexperienced. Wallace has had 3 seasons of regular starts. Trayfoot has had a bit less but is in his second season as a regular bench player. Clifford is very new, but has captained the U20s to a JWC and is currently playing England 7s (and apparently tearing up trees while doing so). None of them has looked out of place when they've come on.
I'd be nervous if all three of them had to start a crunch match, but as long as one of Robshaw and Easter are around and we have a season to develop Trayfoot and/or Clifford as Easter's successor, I think we're in pretty good shape.
We also have other players dotted around who can play back row. Robson was always expected to have a long term future at 6 rather than 5 (though I'd like to see an extra lock join before we did that) and Ward plays 7.
We maybe need one more back rower - but if you compare where we were in 2011-12 (Robshaw, Easter, Mo, Guest, Wallace, York with Trayfoot in the academy. Mo and Easter as Internationals) with next season (Robshaw, Easter, Wallace, Trayfoot, Clifford, with a couple in the academy. Robshaw the only international but Wallace could join him) we are probably one light.