Harley Fox played League as well as Union all the way up to U18's at school and for Queensland so if anyone was to switch from Backrow to Centre, he may be the most obvious candidate.

Mark Mostyn wrote:

connachta wrote:

NewGuy wrote: Fox is 100% joining

So, rumour is true?

I guess nobody can contest it means SOB will be moved back to lock...

And btw happy Butler is free now Brumbies lost...

I think there's too many variables to say. We don't know if Thornbury's any good, we don't know if Butler or Fox are any good or where they'll play, we don't know how well Masterson's going to come back from injury, we don't know if the coaches fancy any of the academy lads to step up, we don't know if Kelly's still here, we don't know if Connolly's going to get more gametime this year, we don't know how we're going to be hit by injury/internationals..

Hopefully the Chiefs lose as well.

Let the Academy/injuries apart.
The point is : if Fox is coming, we'd have 8 senior back-row players.
Connacht can't afford, shouldn't and won't have 8 guys mainly in those positions.

1 of the 8 will be used elsewhere. Only 2 of them have the profile to be
Either SOB as lock or Dawai as centre.
I'd go with the first reasonable option.

Again IF Fox comes, IF there's no injury crisis somewhere, and for THIS season

pinky wrote: Is Butler not contracted to Canberra Vikings?
He was captain last season. Haven't seen a squad list for 2017 so not sure. I think they are under a new ownership structure so maybe that means they have to start recruitment from scratch.

Not really, the Brumbies are partners in the Vikings club and can commit their contracted players to the side, which in theory is supposed to be representative of all ACT clubs.

Is Butler not contracted to Canberra Vikings?
He was captain last season. Haven't seen a squad list for 2017 so not sure. I think they are under a new ownership structure so maybe that means they have to start recruitment from scratch.

connachta wrote:

NewGuy wrote: Fox is 100% joining

So, rumour is true?

I guess nobody can contest it means SOB will be moved back to lock...

And btw happy Butler is free now Brumbies lost...

I think there's too many variables to say. We don't know if Thornbury's any good, we don't know if Butler or Fox are any good or where they'll play, we don't know how well Masterson's going to come back from injury, we don't know if the coaches fancy any of the academy lads to step up, we don't know if Kelly's still here, we don't know if Connolly's going to get more gametime this year, we don't know how we're going to be hit by injury/internationals..

Hopefully the Chiefs lose as well.

NewGuy wrote: Fox is 100% joining

So, rumour is true?

I guess nobody can contest it means SOB will be moved back to lock...

And btw happy Butler is free now Brumbies lost...

salmson wrote:

Mark Mostyn wrote:
Edit: Although according to the Connacht website Andrew Browne is 97 kg so what do I know?

Someone should explain to him the need to put *both* feet on the scales.

img2-thejournal-ie.cdn.ampproject.org/ii...=600&version=2795424

Picture of him with Mul, Loughney and Muldowney...

Another one to add to the pile of evidence why you should never ever trust online height/weight stats.

Edit: oops, no idea why that's linking as a download, but anyhow

Brumbies beaten by the Hurricanes this morning so Jarrad Butler should be here soon.

Mark Mostyn wrote:
Edit: Although according to the Connacht website Andrew Browne is 97 kg so what do I know?

Someone should explain to him the need to put *both* feet on the scales.

salmson wrote:

Mark Mostyn wrote: Don't see the logic in using three NIQ spots in the back row, or moving SOB to lock. Do we have a plan for loosehead beyond hoping the Coulson situation clears up?

Find it hard to believe the IRFU would sign off on that, though Munster have two NIQ/NIE locks and Ulster should have had 2 in the backrow but for injury, so I guess the never-applied rules are being loosened further. Could be a last land-grab before the residency well dries up, I suppose, in which case talent rather than positional balance would be key.

As for SOB as a lock, why would he want to go from stone-cold first choice 6 on the fringes of the Irish squad to 5th or 6th choice Connacht lock?

Who even knows, they seem to just make up the rules on NIQs as they go along at this stage.

Totally agree on SOB, he's the best young 6 in the country IMO and 105 kg locks just don't exist at the top level. Edit: Although according to the Connacht website Andrew Browne is 97 kg so what do I know?

Bazzo, my concern with McCabe would be that he has pretty much no top level experience at 25 years old, but obviously the coaching staff (Jimmy Duffy) are familiar with him from his loan spell and must see something in him, whether they believe he's good enough to be 2nd choice at present in anyone's guess.

Does anyone know what happened with Dever, Kelly, and Saba? Nothing was ever announced officially.

Mark Mostyn wrote: Don't see the logic in using three NIQ spots in the back row, or moving SOB to lock. Do we have a plan for loosehead beyond hoping the Coulson situation clears up?

Peter McCabe has been signed from Munster. Chatting with someone who's played with him recently and he's supposed to be a good scrummager. Big unit too.

Mark Mostyn wrote: Don't see the logic in using three NIQ spots in the back row, or moving SOB to lock. Do we have a plan for loosehead beyond hoping the Coulson situation clears up?

Find it hard to believe the IRFU would sign off on that, though Munster have two NIQ/NIE locks and Ulster should have had 2 in the backrow but for injury, so I guess the never-applied rules are being loosened further. Could be a last land-grab before the residency well dries up, I suppose, in which case talent rather than positional balance would be key.

As for SOB as a lock, why would he want to go from stone-cold first choice 6 on the fringes of the Irish squad to 5th or 6th choice Connacht lock?

Mark Mostyn wrote: Don't see the logic in using three NIQ spots in the back row, or moving SOB to lock. Do we have a plan for loosehead beyond hoping the Coulson situation clears up?

With a surname like "Fox" I wonder have they found Irish heritage and he may not be an NIQ - like Robertson McCoy.

Don't see the logic in using three NIQ spots in the back row, or moving SOB to lock. Do we have a plan for loosehead beyond hoping the Coulson situation clears up?

This is all I can find. No actual source quoted. No idea if this is a reliable twitter account or one of those ITK eejits that plague football.

Fox is 100% joining , I wonder is he Irish qualified ? Is he any good aswell