Taunton have signed the league’s most high profile arrival as twotime England international Ollie Devoto, formerly of Bath and Exeter Chiefs, hopes to be a difference maker in their title pursuit.
Devoto, 30, accumulated 127 appearances and scored 21 tries for Exeter but while Luctonians head coach Ryan Watkins sees the value of the signing, he also stresses the importance of developing players internally and sending them the other way.
Watkins told The Rugby Paper: “It’s great for the league but we’ve got young talented players that aspire to get to those levels themselves. We had Archie Benson sign from us to Northampton Saints, so those guys coming down will be up against young, hungry players who will see the likes of Devoto as a challenge to showcase any credentials they might have.
“Our model is very different, we want to develop our own. I prefer young and hungry players, I feel you get a lot more out of them and they give a lot more to the club. We want to be around for a long time, so for the last few seasons, we’ve targeted 20/21-year-olds that might have missed the boat for an academy, been to a decent university programme and when they come out of that we hopefully provide them with a good environment to get better.
Esta historia es de la edición September 01, 2024 de The Rugby Paper.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición September 01, 2024 de The Rugby Paper.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
England can find a little bit of cheer
SO HERE we are on the final day of England’s autumn international series with all of us hoping and expecting Steve Borthwick’s team to win today after three weeks of bitter disappointment.
Stop messing with Marcus - Campese
DAVID Campese believes England are going backwards under Steve Borthwick, who is ‘messing around’ with talisman Marcus Smith.
Being a Lion was the highlight of my career
I PLAYED 19 games and scored 219 points for the Lions, on the tours to South Africa in 1968 and New Zealand in 1971, but I never played in a Test and that was fair enough.
Cook's crew not fazed as they eye tilt at top half
THERE appear to be few signs of second season syndrome at Westcombe Park as captain Nick Cook reveals the group aren’t even contemplating the threat of relegation and are instead targeting a top-half finish.
Forwards pack a punch for the Reds
OLD Redcliffians produced a proud defensive effort to take a bonus-point win.
Tom 'Ailes' the achievements of inspirational skipper Riley
SEDGLEY Park No. 8 Tom Ailes says his team relish the competitive nature of National One and is confident the Tigers can rectify their rocky start to the season in weeks to come.
Strachan confident Ampthill will be firing again soon
FRASER Strachan is determined to put Ampthill’s leaky defensive showings behind them and gain some much needed confidence in the run up to Christmas.
It's a whole new ball game for Rigg
WILL Rigg’s ambition was to become a professional cricketer but it is the oval ball rather than The Oval that is his driver now.
Scarratt leads the way for Lightning
LOUGHBOROUGH won a wet and windy East Midlands Derby after having the bonus point in the bag by half-time.
Becconsall: We need to release pressure
WILL Becconsall says Exeter are not spooked by the threat of relegation as they look to turn around their Premiership campaign after starting with six straight defeats.
