Why it’s tough to keep our young hot-shots (From Worcester News)

Why it’s tough to keep our young hot-shots

12:00pm Friday 6th January 2012 in Tom Guest

HOW do Worcester Warriors combat the perennial problem of losing their most promising players to the Aviva Premiership’s top sides?

The subject of ‘poaching’ is one that has angered Warriors fans – and no doubt the club’s powers-that-be – ever since Worcester broke into the top-flight of English rugby.

The likes of Dylan Hartley, Richard Blaze, Tom Wood and Graham Kitchener have all been produced by Andrew Stanley and Gary Meechan’s thriving Sixways academy, but then plucked away from Worcester by clubs such as Leicester and Northampton before they have fulfilled their early promise in Blue and Gold.

It looks highly likely Miles Benjamin will be the next home-grown ace to quit Sixways, while talented loosehead Matt Mullan is also out of contract this summer and impressive back-rower Matt Kvesic will doubtless be attracting admiring glances from elsewhere.

Warriors wing Marcel Garvey believes the club is taking steps in the right direction to prevent the Sixways stars moving on, but admits it is a tough challenge.

He said: “I think it is a hard thing for Worcester to stop happening. If the big clubs come in for players, then there is a carrot dangling and some of the boys will want to take that opportunity.

“Worcester have set the foundations for those players and, hopefully, people like Dylan Hartley and Richard Blaze will look back and say they have to thank Andrew and Gary for what they’ve done for them.”

Garvey added: “At Warr-iors, some guys are big fish in a small pond, but when they move they become a small fish in a big pond, so it can take time to find their feet.

“I think Kitch is doing that now at Leicester. He will come good – he played at the weekend and I think he will get a lot more game-time soon.

“You can see what is happening at Worcester and obviously the club want to move in the right direction. The appointment of Thinus [Delport, recruitment consultant] to scout players is a big step forward and what Richard Hill and Phil Davies are trying to build here is something special.

“We want to play in the Heineken Cup as a team – that is the biggest goal at the moment and we want to be in the big league. Once you are there, that’s when you can attract the big players.”