GLASGOW WARRIORS have confirmed the recruitment of Scotland loose-head prop Allan Dell from London Irish on a deal which will run for the now customary undisclosed period of time.
The South African-born 30-year-old has been capped 34 times by Scotland and was called up to the 2017 British and Irish Lions tour to New Zealand. He initially came to prominence in this country during a five-year spell with Edinburgh between 2014 and 2019.
His move to London Irish has not been an entirely positive experience and his struggles with injury, form and selection have contributed to a a drop down the international pecking order. Dell appears to now sit behind Pierre Schoeman, Rory Sutherland, Jamie Bhatti and Oli Kebble in the battle for the dark blue No 1 jersey.
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Dell will compete against Bhatti, Kebble (who can play both sides of the scrum), Nathan McBeth and coming man Murphy Walker (who can also play both sides) for game time at Scotstoun next season.
Glasgow have still to appoint a replacement to Danny Wilson as head coach. Jim Mallinder, Scottish Rugby’s Head of Performance, has told The Times newspaper that he hopes the position will be filled in the next couple of weeks.
“I’m excited to get stuck into life in Glasgow,” said Dell. “It’s a good group of boys here, and it’s always been a club that’s played an attractive brand of rugby. To come back to Scotland and be a part of that is a really exciting prospect.
“My gran is originally from Paisley, too, so there’s a really nice family feel to coming back north and pulling on the Glasgow shirt.
“There’s a really good crop of guys in the front-row here, too – Jamie [Bhatti], Oli [Kebble] Simon [Berghan] and Zander [Fagerson] I obviously know from Scotland camp, but even guys like Nathan McBeth and Murphy Walker are really talented young props. The good thing is that we’ll all push each other and challenge each other to get better, which can only be good for the club overall.”
Glasgow Warriors Scrum Coach Al Dickinson added: “We’re excited to add Allan to our squad ahead of the new season. He’s a loose-head who has proven he can perform at the highest level, and adds to the quality and depth of the props we already have at Scotstoun.
“He’s also gained valuable experience in the English Premiership, which I know from experience to be a relentless league for front-rowers and will only have made him a better player.
“His enthusiasm for the game and experience will drive and challenge the players around him, and we’re looking forward to welcoming him to the environment for pre-season next week.”
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Dell should be reaching his physical peak over the next 3 years as a prop, however can he stay fit?
I would presume that the signing was settled (and very much rumoured) whilst Wilson was still in post.
Definitely not a bad signing but Glasgow seem fairly well stocked at LH already. Maybe Kebble will move to TH? WP Nel won’t be around too much longer and TH isn’t exactly an area of strength for the national side.
As a side issue, who is sanctioning or involved in new signings given there is no head coach – although I suspect that will change once the Argentina tour is over