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Steamer lock stocks have two empty barrels as Sorenson departs |
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Written by Jamie Troughton
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Sunday, 29 October 2006 |
Bay of Plenty's fragile lock stocks have been hit with another savage blow, with Mark Sorenson confirming he's heading to English club Newcastle on an 18-month contract. The outstanding Steamers performer this year - voted forward of the year by his peers last week - has drawn the curtain on his Bay career after again missing out on the Chiefs yesterday.
Longtime locking partner Bernie Upton has already transferred back to Wellington for next season. But while previous omissions have been heavy with disappointment, the bad Super 14 news has been cushioned for Sorenson this time around.
``It's a funny old situation - my first priority was to stay and try and make a Super 14 side but this time I had a contingency plan in place,'' the 27-year-old said. ``It's all signed and sealed and we're very excited about it now.'' Sorenson will qualify as a local player in the UK when he marries fiance Sarah Chapman next month in Fiji, as she has a British passport. He's expecting to play his first game for Newcastle before Christmas and he'll head off with few regrets.
``I've played my guts out for the Bay and I feel like I've done everything I can here. It makes me quite content and I've had some bloody good times with the Bay over the last five years as well.'' The news isn't all bleak for Bay of Plenty - this season's revelation Aaron Rameka put pen to paper yesterday and signed on for another two years, but BOPRU chief executive Paul Abbot couldn't hide his disappointment. ``It's a double-whammy really - we had a bit more warning with Bernie but the Sos one went down to the wire,'' Abbot said. ``We made an extremely competitive offer to him but at the end of the day it came down to not making Super 14. Once again, we're suffering because of that.''
The problem Bay faces is the paucity of locking talent available at the moment. Union officials haven't limited their search to New Zealand - they've been contacted by several Australian players coming back from the UK hoping to break back into Super 14. But Abbot would rather see a local player try and do what Rameka has done this year - push into contention through hard work and discipline.
The likes of Rotoiti's Josh Katene-Roberts and Kawerau's Bless Ngaheu would be high on that list, with Te Puna's Aidan Kuka seen more as lock/loose forward cover. ``We don't have a big-name lock to fill the spot but it's probably not a priority. There are players in the system who, with the right conditioning and preparation, would be contenders.''
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