Melbourne Rebels 2011

[en_force_er]

For your consumption.

http://www.theroar.com.au/2010/01/25/who-should-play-for-the-melbourne-rebels/

 

[stoff]

I think Tomaiti Horua should be an obvious target. Probably biased on that as I was playing schoolboys in Vic at the time he went through.

As a Melbourne person though, taking off my rugby fan hat, we need big name players. The hardest part in Melbourne is to work out who that is, and unfortunately there aren't too many Rugby players who fit that bill. I am fairly sure a poll of all my non-rugby aquaintances would have no idea who Rocky, Gits, Stirling, or most current day Wallabies are. To get mass market interest we need the profile of a Lotte, Wendall, Gregan or Eales (don't spose John or George are up for a comeback season?). Failing that, Billy Slater, Greg Inglis or Issy Folau have profile. Having had one test and a Crusaders trial game has not fed the market down here. The ARC helped, but the rug was pulled after only one (fairly successful) season for Melbourne.

I'm a realist and up against a new A-League franchise, and the existing Melbourne teams in various codes this is going to be a hard slog. Don't get me wrong I want it to succeed and I will be a foundation member.

 

[en_force_er]

I swear I saw Horua in the Melbourne CBD today. Which is stage as he should be in Ulster.... theoretically it is possible I guess as I think he'd be just entering a short break.

The only big name that would make a difference to crowds is Lote Tuquiri and that isnt going to happen. Melbournians honestly love that guy. I think it's a combination of his dreads and laid back demeanor.

This being said big names will get 5 minute press releases not fans. Wins will get fans. Why not be like the Brumbies and make the big names ourselves?

Just a thought.

 

[Lindommer]

Tevita Mailau? I can't see where he's had anything to do with Oz...

Go to his Auckland Blues profile. It says he was born in Manly, NSW. His Auckland NPC doesn't have a birth place so I'm inclined to think they wouldn't lie.

Mmm? And yet Wikipedia says he was born in Auckland. Check here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tevita_Mailau

 

[stoff]

I would love it if Rugby could make some names here to generate followers. But it is Melbourne and there is significant competition in the form of 8ish AFL clubs (one of which I pay near $400 for a guaranteed GF ticket if the Hawks make it), the most succesful soccer team in terms of A-League, probably the most succesful NRL team of the last however many years they've been going, the most successful NBL team of the last few years, the most succesful T20 franchise, and I hate to think about sports I don't know about. To get column inches on a Foxtel sport we need success, and some big names. Unfortunately Rod won't do that, neither will most Wallabies, only leaguies at this stage.

On Horua being in town, not surprised - most of his good mates from Skevvy days still live here.

 

[en_force_er]

Mmm? And yet Wikipedia says he was born in Auckland. Check here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tevita_Mailau

I dont get it. I hope you aren't arguing Wikipedia would be more accurate that his S14 profile.

Still stranger things have happened.

On Horua being in town, not surprised - most of his good mates from Skevvy days still live here.

Good to know he still has connections. A quality journeyman the Melbourne S15 side would be lucky to have.

 

[Groucho]

Yes and no. TM? I can't see where he's had anything to do with Oz, but he hasn't played As or 7s for NZ.

Go to his Auckland Blues profile. It says he was born in Manly, NSW.

His Auckland NPC doesn't have a birth place so I'm inclined to think they wouldn't lie.

Definitely born in Manly. Wiki is as reliable as a box of frogs.

 

[Top Bloke]

Warriors winger - Manu Vatuvei is being mentioned as a possible signing

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/rugby/news/article.cfm?c_id=80&objectid=10622419

 

[en_force_er]

Warriors winger - Manu Vatuvei is being mentioned as a possible signing

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/rugby/news/article.cfm?c_id=80&objectid=10622419

I was about to say this would be shocking because I thought the fella was an old man.

Apparently he is 23... it would be a quality signing but could potential a big win for the ABs.

In the meantime could we get his big scary Japanese cousin? His name escapes me.

 

[TOCC]

official website launched
http://www.themelbournerebels.com.au/

 

[fatprop]

Today it is Vickermen and I guess over the next year it will be any available poach, so much for the troubadours thread.

Melbourne Rebels eye Dan Vickerman

* Bret Harris
* From: The Australian

MELBOURNE Rebels recruiters are expected to sound out former Test second-rower Dan Vickerman about returning to Australia next year to play for the Super 15 expansion franchise.

Rebels assistant coach Damien Hill and VRU consultant John Connolly are combing Europe for foreign players and Australians playing overseas.

London-based Vickerman has stated his intention to complete his economics degree at Cambridge University in the middle of next year.

That would rule him out of most of the Super 15 season, but it would be remiss of the Rebels to leave a very sizeable stone unturned as they seek to create a strong playing roster from scratch.

Rebels head coach Rod Macqueen indicated Hill and Connolly would contact Vickerman to ask him about his plans for the future.

Wallabies outside centre Stirling Mortlock will almost certainly move from the Brumbies to Melbourne and part of the Rebels' pitch was to help him advance his career in the financial sector.

Start of sidebar. Skip to end of sidebar.

End of sidebar. Return to start of sidebar.

The privately owned Rebels, with contacts in Melbourne's Big End of Town, could possibly offer Vickerman a similar inducement.

"Dan has made it known he won't be around until he finishes his studies," Macqueen said.

"There could be some interest, but we need to know what his plans are. "They (Hill and Connolly) could be in touch with him.

"I wouldn't say no."

Brumbies' coach Andy Friend is close to Vickerman and is keen to find a way to bring him back to Canberra, where he started his professional rugby career.

Given his class, any efforts to lure Vickerman back to Australia by the Super rugby franchises would be warmly welcomed by Australia coach Robbie Deans.

Vickerman had developed into a world-class second-rower before leaving Australia at the end of 2008 to continues his studies at Cambridge.

His lineout expertise and physical aggression would be wonderful additions to Deans' national squad for the 2011 World Cup in New Zealand.

Meanwhile, it is understood former All Blacks halfback Justin Marshall has expressed interest in playing for the Rebels.

The Rebels would not confirm whether they had an interest in the 36-year-old Marshall, who has been playing in Europe since finishing with the All Blacks in 2005.

"We are starting from nothing so we have to look at the mix," Macqueen said.

"We have our priorities and we will go for them first. We are looking for a certain type of player who will fit into the Rebels' culture."

The Rebels are believed to be targeting Mortlock, Wallabies' captain Rocky Elsom, Force openside flanker David Pocock, Waratahs Berrick Barnes, Benn Robinson and Wycliff Palu and France-based rugby league convert Mark Gasnier, who is keen to return to Australia.

 

[Moses]

I've merged fatprop's message into "now we have a 5th team who will play for it", and renamed the thread to Melbourne Rebels 2011. Should prove a nice place for all the rebels shopping threads

 

[Moses]

official website launched
http://www.themelbournerebels.com.au/

Hey that website looks the business, already better than the cluttered mess that is the Tahs homepage

 

[en_force_er]

Hey that website looks the business, already better than the cluttered mess that is the Tahs homepage

It is a shmick webpage but you have to remember they have little to report or display as of yet.

Also, unlike the Tahs/Reds/Brumbies/Force, the local league has a completely separate website. Which must make management easier.

 

[fatprop]

So this week it is

Melbourne Rebels tempt Danny Cipriani towards a new life
England's Danny Cipriani runs with the ball during the International match at Twickenham

Cipriani could be among the overseas recruits Melbourne sign to augment their Australian players
Mark Souster


One of Channel 4’s flagship programmes this year has been Relocation: Phil Down Under, with Phil Spencer, the property guru. In the next few months a few English players, among them Danny Cipriani, along with his actress girlfriend Kelly Brook, may be beating a path to Spencer’s door as they contemplate a new life in Australia with Melbourne Rebels.

It is a reversal of the trend in the professional era of Australian players — from the highest-class Wallabies, such as Michael Lynagh, to the journeymen — heading to Europe with varying degrees of success and commitment.

Heading the other way is a novel break from the norm, mainly because until now Super rugby has been pretty much a closed shop. Now the restrictions have been relaxed and the attractions of joining a new rugby venture in a city regarded as the sporting capital of Australia must be enticing.

Melbourne won the rights to a new Super franchise last year. It will be a challenge putting together a team from scratch in a comparatively short space of time, one ready to take their bow in February 2011 and, more importantly, one that can be competitive from the outset. The long-term aim is to nurture Australian talent, but in the interim the team, who will be privately funded, will need at least ten overseas players in a squad of 30. Hence the move into the English and Welsh marketplace, and some trophy signings will add to the allure.

John Connolly, the former Australia and Bath head coach who has spearheaded the recruitment drive, said that players he had spoken to in England had been “very excited” at the prospect. “It has not been a hard sell,” he said. “Melbourne is a great city. It is the sporting capital of Australia and rugby union will be right at its heart. Melbourne people would go to watch the grass grow. The climate is great and it is a great location.”

A consortium headed by Harold Mitchell, the owner of one of the country’s biggest media buying companies, will control the franchise with the blessing of the Australian Rugby Union (ARU), with a playing budget of about A$10 million (about £5.5 million). That is about 20 per cent higher than the salary cap in the Guinness Premiership. Salaries have not yet been set, but the bigger the draw, the higher the salary. Cipriani is high on the wanted list.

“If we put together a team which is successful, [and] our group is quietly confident of doing that, Melbourne will support us,” Mitchell said.

Melbourne will play at the new 31,000-capacity Rectangular Stadium. The Super 15 format will from next year feature five teams each from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa in three pools of five, and the top six teams will contest the finals.

John O’Neill, the ARU chief executive, said: “We made a decision that rugby needed private equity on a nationally controlled basis. It is a significant landmark in Australian rugby’s competitive position vis-à-vis the other football codes. I think if we resisted the introduction of private ownership, the game would be diminished.”

Rod Macqueen, the Melbourne head coach who masterminded Australia’s 1999 World Cup triumph, recognises that it will not be plain sailing. “It is an experiment in some ways,” he said. “But it should be an interesting exercise. The opportunity is there for someone to become immersed in the culture of the place. This is about more than just playing rugby.”

 

[TOCC]

Hugh McMenimen has been approached by the Rebels about cutting short his Japan contract and returning to Australia for 2011, he is strongly considering this option so he is elegible for the 2011 RWC, he also said that he hopes the Reds come forward with a good offer as well because he would like to return to QLD.

Michael Hobbs(Highlanders 5/8) has been approached and is considering his options and its beleived the Stanley brothers Winston and Benson of the Auckland Blues have also been approached since they are both elegible for Australia.

 

[Epi]

When's Kingi off contract? With Genia as skipper I can't see him getting much time of the field for the rest of the season and he definitely has talent...

 

[TOCC]

unsure of the length of Kingi's contract, initially he was only in the academy and then got promoted to the senior squad....

I would hesitate to guess that Ben Lucas would be more inclined to move south then Kingi would, Kingi takes me as the kind of person who is more then happy to serve his apprenticeship under a player like Genia, Lucas however is a player who is about ready to step up into a starting position.

I tend to think that Lucas might be a little shitty at they way things have panned out for him at the Reds as well, he gets encouraged to switch to halfback because the reds are weak in that position, he spends 2 years learning that role and then link decides he wants to try and convert him back to a 5/8 because of the depth at halfback.

 

[Epi]

I tend to think that Lucas might be a little shitty at they way things have panned out for him at the Reds as well, he gets encouraged to switch to halfback because the reds are weak in that position, he spends 2 years learning that role and then link decides he wants to try and convert him back to a 5/8 because of the depth at halfback.

Good point - but would the rebels want him? Is he any good? He didn't blow me away playing half for QLD last year...

 

[en_force_er]

I tend to think that Lucas might be a little shitty at they way things have panned out for him at the Reds as well, he gets encouraged to switch to halfback because the reds are weak in that position, he spends 2 years learning that role and then link decides he wants to try and convert him back to a 5/8 because of the depth at halfback.

Good point - but would the rebels want him? Is he any good? He didn't blow me away playing half for QLD last year...

He is exactly like Josh Valentine, ridiculously average.

Not good, not bad, average.