AHEAD of Glasgow Warriors European Champions Cup clash with La Rochelle this evening, head coach Dave Rennie has confirmed that he has spoken to Fijian lock Leone Nakarawa about potentially re-signing for the Scotstoun side, but denied anything has been agreed just yet.
Nakarawa is currently a free agent having been sacked from his previous club, Racing 92, after returning late from the World Cup in Japan and Glasgow, where Nakarawa played from 2013 until 2016, are one of a number of clubs who are keen to secure his signature.
There have been reports in the French media in recent days that Nakarawa’s return to Glasgow is a done deal, but Rennie was quick to quash that suggestion.
“I’ve had a conversation with him, like half the world I imagine, but there is nothing to confirm yet,” the New Zealander said.
“He is certainly someone we would be interested in. He is tight with the club, he’s got a lot of history here and he’s a hell of a player.
“There are a lot of options for him so we will see how that plays out.
“Once we have certainty we will announce something. But we can’t confirm anything at this stage.”
On the face of it, the last thing Warriors need is another lock with Jonny Gray and Scott Cummings already on the books but Rennie admits that with the Scotland pair due to be on international duty in the near future, world-class cover for their position would be more than welcome and the ball is currently in Nakarawa’s court.
“Both those guys [Cummings and Gray] will play a lot for Scotland during the Six Nations we believe, so they will be away a lot,” said Rennie.
“We still look pretty good depth at lock, but if we get a couple of injuries, as we’ve had in the past, then we’re thin.
“(Nakarawa) can also play in the loose forwards but it’s all pie in the sky stuff at the moment.
“We have spoken and put our best foot forward, like a lot of clubs I imagine. We will see what pans out from there.”
Rennie’s immediate focus though, is his side’s clash with La Rochelle at Scotstoun. Warriors sneaked a tight 27-24 victory over the French in last week’s tie and he is aware that if his side are to retain ambitions of qualifying from the group stages, another victory, with potentially a bonus point, is vital.
“Obviously getting five points is a key part of our thinking, but we need a quality performance and then hopefully the tries will look after themselves,” he said.
“We need to win this week, beat Exeter and then do the same with Sale (both next month) to have a strong chance of getting through. The focus for us is trying to win the pool.”
Rennie has made five changes to the side, with loose-head prop Aki Seiuli making his first start for the club while Kyle Steyn, Huw Jones, Stafford McDowall and Ali Price also come into the starting fifteen and Rennie anticipates that continuing to shake things up will only serve to increase competition within the squad.
With a double-header against Edinburgh coming up over the Christmas week and a heavy schedule in the new year, Rennie knows how important it is to utilise every player at his disposal.
“We’ve got to rotate our international boys, so we pick teams five weeks out,” he said.
“It gives us a chance to plan how we rest guys so they’ll not all be on the one weekend.
“So we’ve got an idea of the teams we’re going to put on the park over the next few weeks, but it can always be adjusted based on form or injury. The players aren’t aware of that sort of stuff.”
Warriors were handed a boost mid-week with Tommy Seymour’s retirement from international duty. Rennie admits he is delighted that he will have a player of such class at his disposal during the Six Nations, and he with Seymour’s contract expiring at the end of this season, he also confirmed the club are keen to see his sign an extension.
“It’s great to have someone of his experience around at a time when we’re often missing players,” Rennie said of the Six Nations part of the season.
“He’s really enthusiastic about playing 15 - it’s a different role for him and has got him out of his comfort zone a little bit, but not too dissimilar to wing. He gets a lot more ball in his hands, so he’s thriving on that.”
“We’ve been in discussions with Tommy about his future; he loves the club, he wants to stay and we want him to be here. There’s a couple of things that need sorted, I’d imagine but we expect Tommy to be here long-term.”
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