Latest news with #Scottish-qualified
STV News
4 days ago
- Sport
- STV News
Henco Venter disappointed to be leaving Glasgow due to Scottish Rugby strategy
Henco Venter expressed disappointment over his impending Glasgow exit after becoming one of the first victims of Scottish Rugby's drive to reduce the number of non-Scottish-qualified players affiliated to the country's two professional clubs. It was announced in March that the 33-year-old South African back-rower would be leaving Warriors this summer to join French second-tier side Brive. Venter, a fans' favourite at Scotstoun, had hoped to extend his two-year stint at the club, and head coach Franco Smith said in April he would have liked to have retained the forward. However, Scottish Rugby director of rugby David Nucifora is overseeing a shift in strategy to provide more opportunities for Scottish-qualified players to play for Glasgow and Edinburgh. Explaining his reasons for leaving at a press conference on Monday, Venter said: 'Oh, tricky question. It's from above and all the stuff going on in Scotland rugby with the foreigners. That's basically one of the main reasons. I love this place and I'd love to stay here.' Venter has had more than two months to get his head around the fact his Glasgow career will be over once their involvement in the United Rugby Championship play-offs is over this month, but he admits he was not expecting to be released. 'It's rugby, so there's always something and some challenge to overcome, some injury,' he said. 'So, yeah, it's bad and I didn't like it, but it's rugby. You don't take anything personally. 'You learn to accept stuff and just be better where you can be better and perform where you can perform and enjoy every moment. I'll enjoy this week and hopefully next week.' Venter insisted he 'respects' Scottish Rugby's change of policy with regard to foreign players. 'I understand that's their plan going forward and I respect it,' he said. 'I am not Scottish, so it's a privilege to be here and to give back to the club and to the country. 'If they make their plans, they have a will to make Scotland rugby better and I hope they succeed in it.' Venter was the toast of Scotstoun during and after Friday's URC quarter-final victory over Stormers as he scored a try and produced a magnificent display in his final home match for the Warriors. They now face Leinster in the semi-final at Aviva Stadium on Saturday, and the South African is braced for a formidable task as he bids to prolong his Glasgow career by one more week. When asked what it would require to win in Dublin, he said: 'Twenty-three dogs and 80 minutes of just everyone giving everything. 'They're a class outfit with world-class players and world-class coaching staff. But it's rugby. So if we do our stuff right, then we can do it. 'These games, this is what you play for. Big stakes, big crowd, everyone just ready to give everything.' Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
Scotsman
4 days ago
- Sport
- Scotsman
'Great acquisition': Son of ex-England coach could enhance Glasgow Warriors
Stand-off who played against Scotstoun club this season linked with move north Sign up to our Rugby Union newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Dan Lancaster would be a 'great acquisition' for Glasgow Warriors if the Scottish-qualified stand-off opts to head north in the summer. The Racing 92 player looks set to leave Paris when his contract expires at the end of the season and has been heavily linked with a move to Scotstoun. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Glasgow are losing Tom Jordan at the end of the current campaign, with the versatile Scotland international having agreed a deal to join Bristol Bears, and the Warriors have already struck a deal to bring Charlie Savala to the club from Northampton Saints. But Savala is currently out with a knee injury and Glasgow assistant coach Nigel Carolan said the club would be in the market for quality Scottish-qualified players. Dan Lancaster, centre, chats with Glasgow Warriors pair Jamie Dobie and Rory Darge after the Champions Cup match between the sides at Scotstoun in January this year. | SNS Group 'I'm not involved in those upstairs decisions,' said Carolan. 'The way we're playing at the moment, I think we're a club that hopefully will attract a lot of players. For players of national interest, we're definitely a good option at the moment. I'm not too sure who's involved with that side of things but if he does come, he's been doing quite well with Racing this year. He'd be a great acquisition.' Lancaster, 24, has played 25 games for Racing this season, starting 16 of them, and featured for the French club against Glasgow in a Champions Cup pool stage match at Scotstoun in January. He moved last summer from Ealing Trailfinders, following his father, Stuart Lancaster, to Paris. Lancaster senior, the former England boss, was appointed head coach of Racing in June 2024 but left the club in February after a difficult tenure. His son has started more games for the club since and Carolan admitted Glasgow were always on the look-out for players who could help unlock their talented backline. 'With our backs, we've got serious quality there,' said the Warriors attack coach. 'If we can add to it, we've got so many guys that we've developed over the last couple of years who are now of national interest. I think on those [international] windows where those guys are away, it's important that we continue to develop our own players. If there's one or two that can add to that quality, I think it's important as well.' Dan Lancaster gets a pass away while playing for Racing 92 against Sale Sharks in the Investec Champions Cup. | Getty Images Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Dan Lancaster is Scottish-qualified through his Dumfries-born paternal grandmother and played for Scotland at under-18 level before switching to England U20s. Stuart Lancaster was born in Penrith but played for Scottish Students, Scotland U19 and Scotland U21 via his mother. Glasgow, meanwhile, don't expect to have either Zander Fagerson or Jack Dempsey available for the United Rugby Championship semi-final against Leinster in Dublin on Saturday. Fagerson has been sidelined by a calf injury since April and Dempsey has not played since the Six Nations due to a hamstring problem. 'Both are making some really good progress but this weekend is going to be too early for the two of them,' said Carolan. 'Certainly for Zander and his Lions tour, he's well on track there. He's one we could definitely do with at the moment, he's a big player. He's getting close but this weekend is just a bit too soon.' Jones 'touch and go' Huw Jones, who missed the quarter-final win over the Stormers due to an ongoing Achilles tendon issue, is touch and go for the semi and unlikely to be risked if there any doubts around his fitness. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'Huw is not the worst,' said Carolan. 'We need to track him and see how he's progressing through the week. We pulled him [out] last week. He was just a little bit tight in that area. He had a scan and a jab in it. We'll see how he progresses this week. 'He's on track but we're going to have to wait and see. He won't train [on Monday] but we'll see how he is on Tuesday and Thursday. Dan Lancaster playing for Scotland U18 against Wales in 2018. | SNS Group 'Huw wants to do what's best for himself and the club first of all. Maybe if there was no Lions tour he could risk it. But he wants to put the best version of himself out there as well. At the moment, he just has to hold back. He's afraid to just let loose on that, until it settles down. 'Everyone wants to see Huw Jones at full strength and full stride. But if he's holding back, I don't think it's good for anybody.'
Scotsman
4 days ago
- Sport
- Scotsman
All change at Edinburgh Rugby as 164-cap quartet play final game
Everitt confident new signings can help club continue progressing Sign up to our Rugby Union newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Sean Everitt is confident the influx of new players at Edinburgh can help them build on the progress they made over the course of a season which saw them qualify for the United Rugby Championship play-offs and reach the semi-finals of the Challenge Cup. The campaign came to an end in South Africa on Saturday with a 42-33 defeat by the Bulls in the quarter-finals of the URC. It was the first time since 2022 that Edinburgh had made it as far in the competition and although they started and finished strongly in tough conditions at Loftus Versfeld they were undone by a decisive spell either side of half-time which saw them concede 31 unanswered points. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad It was the final Edinburgh game for a handful of senior players, with Jamie Ritchie, Mark Bennett, Ali Price and Javan Sebastian all bowing out. The quartet has amassed 164 Scotland caps and Edinburgh are losing a lot of experience. In addition, fellow internationals Dave Cherry, Emiliano Boffelli, Matt Scott and Jamie Hodgson are also leaving along with Robin Hislop, Jake Henry, Nathan Sweeney and Jack Hocking. Magnus Bradbury of Edinburgh is tackled by the Bulls' Sebastian de Klerk during the URC quarter-final at Loftus Versfeld. | Getty Images In their place comes a number of new faces, only one of whom is a full international. Scotland hooker Dylan Richardson has signed from the Sharks, and Scottish-qualified props Rhys Litterick, from Cardiff, and James Whitcombe, from Leicester Tigers, are also joining. In addition, wingers Malelili Satala and Finlay Doyle are coming from Leicester and Loughborough University, respectively, along with utility back Piers O'Conor from Connacht, centre Charlie McCaig from Exeter Chiefs and loosehead Ben White from Melrose. It is a big turnover of personnel but Everitt believes they can bed in quickly. 'I'm very confident,' said the Edinburgh coach. 'Obviously, there's a lot of work to do with the youngsters that we have in the group. There's quite a long way between now and the first game and a lot of hard work. What we mustn't do is forget the amount of work that we've put in now and the progress that we've made so that we can hit the ground running in round one against Zebre away from home, which is going to be a tricky fixture. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'We are building from within our structure, so it's not as though we're going to lack cohesion. If anything, it's going to bring Edinburgh Rugby a lot of energy, having new faces around and some of the new players that we're bringing in have played top-level rugby in the English Premiership. Whitcombe has played there and Rhys Litterick is playing for Cardiff. Cardiff just missed out on the play-offs and then Piers O'Conor has done really well and played every game except one, I think, for Connacht. That will bring something different to the group, so it's actually exciting times for us.' Reflecting on the season, Everitt felt his squad grew over the course of a campaign which had several peaks and troughs but ended with Edinburgh producing some of their best rugby to beat South African sides the Lions and Bulls in the Challenge Cup and then securing the back-to-back bonus-point wins over Connacht and Ulster they needed to make the URC play-offs. The low points were a 55-21 drubbing by the Lions in Johannesburg and their failure to win either of the games with Zebre. Honours were even with Glasgow at one win apiece although Franco Smith's side retained the 1872 Cup on aggregate. Jamie Ritchie, right, in his final game for Edinburgh, sprints to close down David Kriel of the Bulls in the URC quarter-final. | Getty Images 'It's been a challenging season,' said Everitt. 'We had a tough start with Leinster at home at full strength and getting on the plane the next day and coming to South Africa for two games. And then we pulled it together quite nicely up until the international break in November. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'We staggered along. We were good but we were inconsistent in our performance as well and didn't always get the results. But if you look at what the guys have achieved to get where they were and then to get into this position of the quarter-final, their efforts have to be commended. 'It's not easy to go into the last two rounds of competition needing 10 points to qualify. So, the fight that this team shows is really encouraging. "We've got a good environment. The players are proud of playing for Edinburgh. We saw that on Saturday. I know we fell short but those are the positives we can take out. There's a lot of growth that has taken place over the season. So, you can't look at this game in isolation. 'And we're certainly excited about what we can bring next year.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Scorers: Bulls: Tries: Hanekom, Kriel, Vorster, Moodie, Johannes, Nortje. Cons: Johannes 3. Pens: Johannes 2. Edinburgh: Tries: Goosen 2, Thompson 2, Ashman. Cons: Thompson 4. Yellow cards: De Klerk (Bulls, 3min), JF Van Heerden (Bulls, 59min), Thompson (Edinburgh, 60min). Bulls: W le Roux; C Moodie (D Williams 14-23, 50-64), D Kriel, H Vorster (S Gans 64), S De Klerk; K Johannes, E Papier (Z Burger 62); J-H Wessels (S Matanzima 64), J Grobbelaar (A van der Merwe 48), W Louw (M Smith 64), C Wiese (J Kirsten 69), JF Van Heerden, M Coetzee (M Van Staden 48), R Nortje, C Hanekom (M van Staden 34-42). Edinburgh: W Goosen; D Graham (M Bennett 5-14), M Currie, J Lang (Bennett 52), H Paterson; R Thompson (B Healy 71), A Price; P Schoeman (B Venter 50), E Ashman (P Harrison 59), D Rae (J Sebastian 20-30, 50), M Sykes, S Skinner, J Ritchie (B Muncaster 52), H Watson, M Bradbury (L McConnell 73). Replacement: C McAlpine.
Scotsman
23-05-2025
- Sport
- Scotsman
Edinburgh Rugby sign Charlie McCaig and Ben White for next season
Two more Scottish-qualified players added to Sean Everitt's squad Sign up to our Rugby Union newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Edinburgh Rugby have signed two more young Scottish-qualified players as they overhaul their squad for next season. Ben White, who came through at Biggar Rugby, has joined the Edinburgh Rugby pro-academy. | SNS Group / SRU Charlie McCaig, a centre from Exeter Chiefs, and Ben White, a loosehead prop from Melrose, will join ahead of the 2025-26 campaign. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad McCaig, 22, was born in Honiton, Devon, and came through the Exeter academy system. He combined his career with the Chiefs with studying for a degree in Liberal Arts at the University of Exeter and helped the latter's first XV win the British Universities title in 2022. He was loaned out to English Championship side Cornish Pirates this season and scored three tries in 19 matches. The centre made his Chiefs debut in February, with a cameo off the bench against the Pirates in the Premiership Cup. McCaig qualifies for Scotland through his grandfather and joins Edinburgh's senior squad on a two-year deal. Ben White, who came through at Biggar Rugby, has joined the Edinburgh Rugby pro-academy. | SNS Group / SRU White, meanwhile, links up with the capital side's pro-academy on a one-year deal. The 20-year-old was awarded the MacPhail Scholarship for promising young players in 2023 and spent five months in South Africa last year at the high-performance training facility at Stellenbosch University. Part of winning Scotland U20 squad White began playing rugby at five with his local club Biggar before moving on to Peebles and Melrose. He has represented Scotland at both under-17 and under-18 level and was part of the Scotland U20 squad that lifted the World Rugby U20 Trophy in Edinburgh last summer. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Sean Everitt, the Edinburgh head coach, said: 'Both players have had impressive journeys in rugby so far, demonstrating dedication and a real commitment to their development. Centre Charlie McCaig is joining Edinburgh from Exeter Chiefs. | Exeter Chiefs 'Charlie will be a fine addition to our senior squad, bringing a strong skill set and a hunger to succeed, while Ben's inclusion in our pro-academy will add further strength and depth for the future. We look forward to welcoming both players to the club this summer.' New signings but 12 leaving Their signing follows that of Scotland hooker Dylan Richardson from Sharks, and Scottish-qualified props Rhys Litterick, from Cardiff, and James Whitcombe, from Leicester Tigers. In addition, wingers Malelili Satala and Finlay Doyle will join Edinburgh from Leicester and Loughborough University, respectively. Both are also Scottish-qualified. Edinburgh have also signed utility back Piers O'Conor from Connacht who is not Scottish-qualified.
Scotsman
16-05-2025
- Sport
- Scotsman
Don't be too quick to discard foreign players, they help develop Scottish talent - coach's plea
Smith stresses role played by Venter and Cancelliere in rise of youngsters Sign up to our Rugby Union newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Franco Smith is committed to bringing through young Scottish talent at Glasgow Warriors but has stressed the importance of foreign players in that regard. Scotland U20 hooker Seb Stephen will make his Glasgow Warriors debut in Saturday's game against Leinster. | SNS Group / SRU Moves are afoot to reduce the number of non-Scottish-qualified players at the two pro clubs but Smith is wary of losing too many. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The departure of the experienced South African back-rower Henco Venter to Brive at the end of the season has already been announced and it also looks as if Sebastián Cancelliere will depart Scotstoun, with the Argentine international wing being linked with a move back to the Hindu club in Buenos Aires. Scotland U20 hooker Seb Stephen will make his Glasgow Warriors debut in Saturday's game against Leinster. | SNS Group / SRU Both have played important roles in the development of native talent at the Warriors and head coach Smith has made his feeling on the subject known to David Nucifora, the performance director appointed last year by Scottish Rugby to improve the pipeline of players flowing into the national side. 'Look, there are three things I think foreigners are used for, which I've discussed with David [Nucifora] before,' said Smith. 'If they help your team to win, and to manage your internationals, and bring young players through, then I think they're an asset. That is my philosophy. If they tick those boxes, then I think it's a necessity. 'Henco Venter helped a lot bringing young loose forwards through like Jack Mann and Euan Ferrie. They all got enough playing time, even when he was in the building. Seb Cancelliere helped with us bringing through young wings. Kyle Rowe got established. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'When our internationals were away [with the Scotland squad], we were still competitive. We won five games when they were not involved. Those are the games we need to win to be competitive at the back end of the season. 'Then we have guys like Josh McKay. It allowed us to manage the players, and we brought some young players through. Winning in the end is not just to get great Scottish-qualified players, but also winning Scottish-qualified players. 'Part of the job here is to convert these guys into international players for Scotland.' Young hooker to make debut against Leinster at Aviva Smith is in his third year in charge of Glasgow Warriors and has put the development of young players at the heart of his philosophy. The coach's key achievement has been to do it while putting out a successful team on the field. Glasgow's United Rugby Championship triumph of last season was one of the great Scottish sporting success stories and the club are through to the quarter-finals of this year's competition. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Smith is proud of how they reached the play-offs with four games to spare and Glasgow will complete their regular season against Leinster in Dublin on Saturday. It's a daunting final league fixture but Smith is again using it as an opportunity to blood young players. There is debut for the Aberdeen-born hooker Seb Stephen and a first start for back-rower Macenzzie Duncan. Lock Jare Oguntibeju also comes into the starting side after all three impressed in last Saturday's win for Glasgow Warriors U23 over Benetton U23 in Italy. Macenzzie Duncan in action during a pre-season game against Connacht. | SNS Group 'We said from the start we're going to bring people through this season,' said Smith. 'Obviously, this week is important but Seb has shown in the last four months since he's joined us a lot of improvement. He's a quality rugby player and he's going to play a lot of games for the Warriors going forward.' Glasgow were taken apart on their last visit to the Aviva, losing 52-0 to Leinster in the quarter-finals of the Champions Cup last month. They will be helped this time by the long-awaited return of Sione Tuipulotu who starts in the centre alongside sidekick Huw Jones in what will be the former's first game since January 10 following surgery on a chest muscle injury. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'The emotional rollercoaster that he's been on the last 14 weeks was tough for the man,' said Smith. 'And we're obviously, excited to have him back.' Leinster v Glasgow Warriors (URC rd 18, Aviva Stadium, Saturday, 7.35pm) Leinster: Hugo Keenan; Tommy O'Brien, Robbie Henshaw, Jordie Barrett, Jimmy O'Brien; Sam Prendergast, Fintan Gunne; Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan, Thomas Clarkson, RG Snyman, James Ryan, Ryan Baird, Scott Penny, Jack Conan (capt). Replacements: Rónan Kelleher, Jack Boyle, Tadhg Furlong, Diarmuid Mangan, Max Deegan, Luke McGrath, Ciarán Frawley, Jamie Osborne. Glasgow Warriors: Kyle Rowe; Sebastian Cancelliere, Huw Jones, Sione Tuipulotu, Kyle Steyn (capt); Adam Hastings, Ben Afshar; Jamie Bhatti, Seb Stephen, Fin Richardson, Jare Oguntibeju, Alex Samuel, Macenzzie Duncan, Rory Darge, Euan Ferrie. Replacements: Gregor Hiddleston, Nathan McBeth, Murphy Walker, JP du Preez, Scott Cummings, Stafford McDowall, George Horne, Tom Jordan.
