From Richie Williams:
This season's exciting squad have been working together for a number of months and have already started to build a special bond together. In what has been an unprecedented period, I have been impressed by their togetherness and willingness to challenge one another. As a group, we have set ourselves some clear objectives for the season as we look to surpass last seasons attainments.
There is a blend of experience and youth with a number of players coming through the club's blossoming pathway. We have also strengthened our squad significantly with the recruitment of a number of Championship players.
Over the next few weeks we will be introducing our playing squad by position.
Today let's talk about our Back Row options
Jake McCloud- Jake is an explosive player who can cover across the back row. He is approaching his 100th appearance for the club. His athleticism is his point of difference as is his ability to score tries. We look forward to seeing Jake on the pitch again this season.
Noah Sloot- Noah is another player that has progressed through the clubs playing pathway. It was great to witness his development last season as he became a regular member of the match day squad. Noah is a physical, no nonsense player who has an appetite for defence. He has grown significantly in confidence and we are excited in seeing him reach his potential.
Ben Adams- A familiar face at the club, Ben has now moved back to us full time after his loan spell from Coventry. A player with huge experience, we are already seeing his positivity around the club. Ben is a natural leader and demonstrates an excellent skill set both sides of the ball.
Matt Dawson- Super consistent in the 2019/20 season, Matt will be re-joining us from Army duties in November. One of the most popular members of the squad, his low centre of gravity, combined with elusive footwork, made him a nightmare for opposition defences. He compliments the other members of the back row and we look forward to his return.
Rob Langley- A new signing back in 2020, we are excited about unleashing Rob this season. I have been impressed by his physicality and dynamism during pre-season along with his defensive capabilities. He is someone else who has played a lot of Championship rugby and will add more steel to our back 5 of the scrum.
Anthony Maka- Another new signing from 2020, Maka has found his new home at Cambridge. He has fully immersed himself in club life and has already formed some strong relationships with other players. After causing havoc whilst playing for Rotherham, I am excited about seeing Maka in action this season. His balance and physicality aligned with his game understanding will augment our extremely strong and versatile back row.
Like most clubs up and down the country, the back row is always the most competitive position. The 6 players above give us multiple options on how we want to play and I expect all of them to push one another to new heights. I would be surprised if any other National 1 clubs have the same strength in depth as we do in this position.
