Sean Marsden crosses the bridge to join Neath

Sean Marsden
By Duncan Wood
July 28 2002

His was a Bristol career that never took off after a hugely promising start. His face hasn't seemed to fit in recent years and he's now the most recent Bristol player to head for the Gnoll after Tiueti, Williams and Dewdney.

After a 2001-2 season when he didn't feature at all for the Bristol Shoguns first XV, Sean was released a couple of weeks back at the same time as Mike McCarrick.

Given that he'd spent the whole season on loan at Exeter amid rumours of a bust up with Dean Ryan, the news didn't entirely come as a surprise. However, there were still some supporters who thought that Ryan's departure may have signalled a return to the fold for Sean.

When you look back on his time at Bristol, it's very much a story of potential that, for one reason or another, was never really allowed to develop at first team level.

It's all a far cry from his first few appearances in a Bristol shirt. He made his debut in the first match under Bob Dwyer, the first game after bankruptcy. Ironically, it was away at Exeter and he set up the winning try for Ben Breeze. In his home debut, he scored a hat trick against Fylde.

It's been a frustrating time ever since as the most appearances he's made in a season is 10 in that 1999-2000 campaign. He had the odd run out at fullback, on the wing and even in the centre without ever cementing a place.

It's a shame that he's moving on as I feel that we never had the chance to see the best of him as he was never given a prolonged opportunity to shine. However, he is behind the likes of Lee Best, Matt Carrington and Jamie Williams in the pecking order at Bristol so he's had to look elsewhere.

I hope that he gets a chance to show his skills at Neath as he's a talented player, as England U21 caps will testify, with bags of pace.

Good luck Sean. I certainly won't forget your first couple of games for Bristol.