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  It is less than 4 years since our Ranfurly Shield win and NPC semi-final appearance and we have now lost all of the starters of August 15, 2004 as well as most of the bench.
According to press reports, both Simms Davison and Ben Castle have signed to play in France.
Clermont have announced the signing of Kiwi prop Simms Davison from the Chiefs. The deal was made on the condition that Davison not take part in the Tri-Nations.
and
Toulon n'a pas attendu longtemps pour débuter son recrutement en vue de la saison prochaine. La montée en Top 14 acquise, le RCT s'est mis d'accord avec le pilier droit néo-zélandais des Chiefs Ben Castle. Mourad Boudjellal est également en contact avec le talonneur international sud-Africain des Sharks Bismark Du Plessis.
Just to remind you (and if you are a true Bay fan you already know) the 22 for the Shield game in 2004 was
1 Filise. 2 Lutui. 3 Castle
4 Sorenson. 5 Upton
6 Ormond (c). 7 Latu
8 Tupai
9 Senio
10 Jackson
11 Tahana
12 McQuoid. 13 Tipoki
14 Stewart
15 Cashmore
16 Simpkins
17 Davison
18 Leota
19 Bourke
20 Tipuna
21 Ierome
22 Baxter
and all of the starting XV has gone as well as Davison who couldn't start due to injury. Of these 16, only Bernie Upton is still playing in NZ, and his future may be uncertain given his lack of game time for the Hurricanes in 2008.
We wish Ben and Simms all the best for the future, they gave their all for the Bay for 5 seasons and who can begrudge them a pay day in the Northern Hemisphere. Simms has been unlucky not to get a shot at the All Blacks despite a couple of stellar seasons for the Chiefs.
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