Brits Move to Bristol Falls Through
Rudi Brits' highly anticipated move to Bristol has fallen through at the final hurdle because the player does not want to move to another club in the Championship.
A deal had seemingly been agreed between the player and Bristol towards the end of last season as his contract at the Cornish Pirates was about to expire. However, Bristol failed to win promotion to the Premiership, which seems to be the main reason that the deal has fallen through.
It seems a little strange why the news has taken so long to come out because if Bristol's failure to get promoted was the main reason the player is now staying put then he should have announced that he was re-signing for the Pirates earlier.
There are a number of benefits for the Pirates as Brits will now stay, it means they do not have to go and find a high quality replacement and can look forward to the new season. Bristol will not be happy, they may have thought they had their man and they could have lost some respect for their league opponents.
Staying
Brits staying means that the Pirates do not have to worry about trying to replace him. This could have been a headache for the coach of the side because he may not have had any idea over a possible replacement who could come in and do a similar job.
For the player it is beneficial because he does not have to relocate to another place. He is already a settled member of the club and staying put means he does not have to buy a new house, make friends at his new club and do all of the things that joining a new club means.
There would have been a core group of fans who did not want Brits to leave in the first place. His decision to stay at the very last minute will go down well with these fans and they could be chanting his name louder and stronger than ever before.
Ian Davies, the Pirates' forwards coach, said: "Having Rudi re-sign for us is a fantastic boost for the squad. Rudi is recognised as one of the best props in the Championship and the Pirates will benefit from his high quality performances as he strives to progress to play in the Premiership."
Annoyed Bristol
Bristol could be very annoyed with the player and his decision to go back to his club. It's a little unclear whether Brits and members of Bristol spoke before the end of last season but some sort of deal must have been arranged if Bristol are annoyed by this news.
The point is that Bristol would have now lost a great deal of respect they held for both the player and the club. This means that when they square up in the Championship next season, Bristol will be trying that little bit harder to try and win and it could mean a bad defeat for the Pirates.
Betting Advice
Brits staying at the Cornish Pirates gives them a much better chance of being competitive next season. Don't expect big things from them because they are still much weaker than other teams in the Championship. Avoid betting on Brits as a player because he's not likely to head the points scoring table.
Bristol will be able to cope with the failure to sign this player and will move on. They are still the favourites to win the league next season and you should still believe they can do so. You can be certain that they'll try to beat the Pirates out of sight.
Robinson Joins Agen
Wales international, Jamie Robinson, has completed a move to Agen from Toulon as he looks ahead to the start of the new season.
Robinson was a fairly popular player in France but he did not get the first team chances that he needed in order to keep his international career alive. This move should reignite his international chances and also gives him the chance to move to another competitive French club.
Agen fought off a number of other clubs for the signature of Robinson. They may have intensified their attempts to sign him after they missed out on his Wales teammate, Andy Powell, who eventually went on to sign for London Wasps.
Robinson has a number of playing attributes that will make him an important figure at his new side. However, some have questioned whether a move back to the United Kingdom may have been a better option for him if he does still have international ambition.
Attributes
Robinson is very quick for a player who plays in the middle of the pitch all the time. He can use his pace to help out with tackling in the middle of the field or to get the ball shifted out wide quickly.
His versatility is something that he has been praised for although he does lack a little bit of size and weight, which would make him efficient in prop and back positions.
His passing is as good as anyone elses in the game and this will make him a very important player for Agen. He can pass the ball the length of the pitch accurately and if this means one try per season for Agen then it would have all been worth it.
He's built up a great level of knowledge in France and seems to have tackled the language barrier well and very quickly. This should help him make the switch to Agen with very few problems as so much of what he needs will already be in place.
Closer to Home
Some have suggested that a move closer to home may have been a better option for Robinson if he wants to stay in the vision of Welsh coaches all the time.
Playing in France does not mean he is geographically thousands of miles away from home but the point is that Welsh coaches are going to be watching more UK domestic rugby than French.
However, the reason that Robinson got into the Wales team in the first place was because of the productive way that he had started playing for Toulon. If he replicates this impressive form at Agen then it won't be too long until he gets another phone call asking him to pull on the red shirt of Wales.
Advice
Agen look like a very unpredictable unit ahead of the new domestic French rugby season. Robinson is one of the very few players that they have brought into the club during the close season and it seems a bit strange why he would leave the security of Toulon.
Avoid putting any bets on Agen as a team because you will need to know a little bit more about how the team plays and how they operate as a unit. Don't be afraid to have a little punt on them during individual matches if you like what you see from their first few games.
Be wary of laying down a lot of money on Robinson to score tries and points at his new club. It is not very likely that he will get into many attacking positions because playing in the middle will stop him from doing this.
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