Irish star ideal for Super 14: Elsom

[travelling_gerry]

Bret Harris | June 04, 2009

Article from: The Australian

ROCKY Elsom has nominated his Heineken Cup-winning Leinster teammate Gordon D'Arcy as an ideal candidate to be a marquee foreign player in a Super 14 team.

A brilliant inside centre, D'Arcy has played Test rugby for Ireland and represented the British and Irish Lions. He has also been named Six Nations player of the tournament twice.

Elsom believes D'Arcy would suit the style of game played in the Super 14.
"I don't know exactly what he is thinking, but he is a player who would suit the style down here because he is really quick," Elsom said. "He is really good in traffic and like you saw in the (Barbarians) game against England last weekend, he is just phenomenal at making breaks. You'd think he would be a good fit."

At 29 years of age, D'Arcy would also be at the right time of his career to consider playing outside Ireland.

There are tax incentives for veteran Irish Test players to finish their careers in Ireland while younger players are trying to establish themselves as internationals.
"Gordon would be around the right age to go and come back," Elsom said.

"There are a lot of players in the northern hemisphere who would like to join Super 14 if they could."

Elsom, who will play number eight for the Barbarians against the Wallabies in Sydney on Saturday night, is anxious to rejoin the Australian squad as soon as possible after signing with the ARU and the Brumbies.

He is hoping to play for the Wallabies against Italy in Canberra on Saturday week.
"I knew it before I left anyway, but the most important thing for me is to play the Tri-Nations and the Bledisloe.

"Whether that happens is something else, but at least I'm here and trying to do that."

Even though he has played non-stop for 18 months, Elsom did not feel as if he needed a break from the game.

"You'd think that's something you have to watch out for, but I sometimes think it is more important to do the right things all the time than necessarily having a big break," Elsom said.

Elsom was lauded in Ireland for his performances for Leinster, but he did not think he had played any better than he did for the Wallabies last year.

"They said over there I was in the best form of my career, but I don't think I was exactly dragging the chain back here before I left," Elsom said.

The Waratahs fans at the Barbarians-Wallabies game will be disappointed that the next time they see Elsom play at the Sydney Football Stadium he will be wearing Brumbies colours.

It is understood negotiations with the Waratahs did not run as smoothly as Elsom would have liked, prompting him to explore other options.

After long negotiations with Queensland Reds, Elsom decided at the last minute to join Matt Giteau at the Brumbies, who are now regarded as early favourites for the 2010 Super 14 title.

"You always have that (expectation)," Elsom said. "We are going to have a good team.

"But people will definitely ask questions if we are not successful," he said.


http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au...015651,00.html

[Thequeerone]

I'd have him here

[jargan83]

we already have a brilliant inside centre

[JediKnight]

we already have a brilliant inside centre

In fact, #12 is one position that most Aussie sides have covered:

Force: JO'C
Reds: Barnes/Cooper (depending on who gets into the changing room first for their choice of jersey!)
Tahs: who cares
Brumbies: Gits (that's his best position....wannabe worldclass #10)

[Working Class]

D'Arcy is a very good player. But I'd like to see O'Driscoll out here. One of the best centre's of all time. And the Tahs would take either of them. Here's a question. Why the hostility toward the Tahs. What have they done. Queensland and the Brumbies have taken more from the Force and have been pretty critical of the organisation aswell.

[mudskipper]

Bret Harris | June 04, 2009

After long negotiations with Queensland Reds, Elsom decided at the last minute to join Matt Giteau at the Brumbies, who are now regarded as early favourites for the 2010 Super 14 title.

"You always have that (expectation)," Elsom said. "We are going to have a good team.

"But people will definitely ask questions if we are not successful," he said.


http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au...015651,00.html

[James]

Why the hostility toward the Tahs. What have they done. Queensland and the Brumbies have taken more from the Force and have been pretty critical of the organisation aswell.

I wouldn't say there was hostility. I would call it semi-friendly ribbing. I mean we all know the Tahs don't do back play. It doesn't matter who their centres are because they are just going to kick the ball anyway. Thus the very funny joke the other week. Whats the difference between and AFL player and a Waratah? AFL players don't kick the ball as much.

[Thequeerone]

I would class myself as hostile to the Tahs - mainly to do with their boring grinding rugby style and their stars - who all seem high maintenance, also NSW effectively killed the ARC, the way they seem to constantly ask the ARU for handouts really grates too, and boy do they moan, never ever seen a happy Tah their fans moan too constantly to the point of nausea at least the ones who come of here.

Apart from that I like the pubs in Sydney and they have given us some excellent players, especially Randwick.

[Working Class]

The Tahs didn't kill the ARC it was those excellent Sydney clubs like Randwick that did that. Or as they like to call them 'Podevein's Heroes'. I'm a Tahs fan. And I have high expectations of them. As does every Tahs fan. We expect to make the finals and if they don't then that's a failure of a season. It not whinging, it's disappointment.

[travelling_gerry]

I'm from Queensland. Nuf said