Don't expect any massive signings at Kingsholm

Are Gloucester going to make any big-name signings during the summer? The short answer to the question that's bouncing around between Kingsholm fans seems fairly simple and equally final ... don't hold your breath.

The cherry and whites have often been one of the leading clubs in the Premiership when it comes to recruiting headline-grabbing big names, but it appears those days are numbered, if not over altogether.

The trouble with big names is that they cost big money, and even a club as well-supported as Glaws hasn’t got unlimited funds.

To add to that, club owner Ryan Walkinshaw is making it clear that he will have no part in irresponsible splashing of cash in the search for instant success.

He wants to preserve the Premiership’s salary cap and is strongly opposed to the “marquee player” idea which will allow clubs to sign a big name on top of the increased cap.

The cap rises to £4.25m in 2012-13, but Walkinshaw says that and the other new initiative has been brought in to appease clubs with huge funds – Bath, Northampton and Saracens, who all wanted a bigger increase.

He told the Citizen: "This was a move designed totally to appease the three clubs that want the removal of the salary cap. It is meant to keep them happy, and nothing more than that.

"What it must not become is the first step to the removal of that cap. The majority of the clubs in Premiership Rugby want the salary cap to continue for the good of the game, and majority must rule.

"So we must come together as a group and make sure we are not pushed around by the few clubs that see things differently. We must not be bullied, we must make sure this is not the start of a trend.”

The 23-yar-old may be short on experience, but he clearly knows his own mind and believes he knows what is best for Glaws.

He added: “My father always said that players who only wanted to sign a one-year contract were not interested in being a full part of something at a club, that they were not fully committed to the Gloucester ethos.

"And there's no doubt that Bryan Redpath and Carl Hogg do not want players who are not fully committed to their methods - and I do not want that either.

“I very much doubt we will take the marquee player option. We will continue to back our shrewd coaches and scouts to identify and produce talented players, from both the club's academy, and also recruited from outside.”

There are fears amongst fans that while changes are always made during close-seasons, at present those changes at Kingsholm seem a bit lop-sided – too many good players have left and those who have joined so far lack what it takes to adequately replace them.

However, it’s early days … coach Bryan Redpath is hopefully working hard to change that situation in order to avoid wasting the progress he and his players achieved in 2010-11.