Graham Dawe remains locked in talks with Plymouth Albion players over new deals
PLYMOUTH Albion boss Graham Dawe is still in talks with a number of last season's squad about agreeing new deals at Brickfields.
Eleven players — Sione Tu'ipulotu, Keni Fisilau, Ruairi Cushion, Alex Davies, George Porter, Tyler Hotson, Sean-Michael Stephen, Rory Watts-Jones, Wayne Sprangle, Tom Skelding and Mark Lee — are known to have extended their contracts at Albion.
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Graham Dawe
However, Kyle Marriott, Matt Hopper (both Cornish Pirates), Joe Clark (Bedford), Geoff Griffiths, James Waterhouse, Darren Clayton (all Esher) and Danny Porte (Newton Abbot) have agreed to join other clubs, while James Owen has retired.
But that leaves players like Martin Rice, Liam Gibson, Ben Mercer, Kieran Hallett, Ryan Hopkins, David Morton, Ed Lewsey, Gary Kingdom, Steve Johns, Dan Collier, Tom Kessell and Gareth Evans still unaccounted for.
Although it is likely a few may move on, Dawe is hopeful of retaining some of them.
However, it may not be until the club return to pre-season training later this month that further announcements are made, as a number of players are currently away on holiday.
"We are still trying to re-sign some of our players from last season" admitted Dawe. "Hopefully we can do that."
Dawe is also looking to put together a new coaching team following the departures of Danny Thomas and James Owen.
"We are still in the process of putting together a coaching team for next season," added Dawe, who has so far refused to rule out backs coach Nat Saumi returning to the club.
Albion, meanwhile, will not be playing Bristol in pre-season.
The teams would have met in a warm-up match on August 13 had Bristol won promotion to the Premiership.
But, following Bristol's defeat to Exeter in the Championship promotion play-off the clubs, decided not to pursue the idea.
Albion are believed to have already lined up another team to play that day, although the club will not confirm that or other pre-season matches until everything has been finalised.
However, Devon rivals Exeter Chiefs will not be taking Bristol's place.
"We are hoping to finalise all our pre-season games in the next week or so," said Dawe, who confirmed Exeter are not on Albion's pre-season fixture list.
"But we will not play Bristol with them being in our league."
2 Comments
by Rugby fan, Plymouth
Wednesday, June 09 2010, 4:12PM
“Plymouth Albion are strapped, that's common knowledge, why the sponsors they have support the club is a different matter. Maybe some won't if Dawsie is in situ and maybe some of those that are on board at the moment are only supporting the club because of Dawsie.. who knows.
But, what I do find concerning is this, that the club is unable to hold onto a significant number of players, due to lack of funds. How many reports have you read on here about talented players saying they have to go find work "and get real" because there is no money in rugby at this level?
Another concern, what about those players who are in the Warriors, who is going to support them now Danny has gone?
Most of the lads in the Warriors travel week in and week out during the season, with no financial support and often very little kit to talk about; all over the country to play matches. It is from this group of players that 'home grown' talent often emerges. Supporting the development of the Warriors would save the club money in the long run, but it is waaay down on the list of priorities and hence why the club will lose talented players, because they cannot give up so much of their time for no return, unless of course they have wealthy parents etc.
It is such a shame to see reports of players leaving, but if the money is not at Albion then if I were a player, I would walk too, regardless of whom was in charge.
Question now is, how do they attract sizeable crowds into watch a match with a dilapidated team?”
by David, Blackpool
Wednesday, June 09 2010, 11:04AM
“I don't want to disrespect or devalue what Graham Dawe has given Albion over the last decade but I think his time has come and gone and the reason some of these players are moving on is because Graham Dawe is not the man to take this club forward. We scraped in to the end-of-season play-offs this year, but it was a damn close run thing, and I am anxious about our prospects for the coming season. We have already lost good players like Marriott and Hopper and I fear we will also lose Rice and Gibson, among others. I don't think we have the club or resources to compete at the Premiership level but we should be a top four team in this division if we want to attract quality players. Graham Dawe has served us well but it is now time for a change.”