Preview – Wasps 2021/22
Wasps Depth Chart 2021/22
“You just have to have that buzz and that nervous energy flying around, and you’re ready to rip into the season, we’re looking forward to getting stuck in.”
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@Timitsu @TnsCov @WaspsRugby You do realise that because of your rancid god awful franchise we almost did, don’t yo… https://t.co/J2sbqd27qr -
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Season Expectation: 8th
Key Signings: Vaea Fifita, Elliot Stooke
After taking over from Dai Young midway through the 2019/2020 season Lee Blackett led Wasps to the promised land, after finishing second in the table Wasps narrowly fell in the premiership final to the Exeter Chiefs. Since that time Wasps have not looked the same, a disappointing 2020/2021 season saw Wasps finish in 8th place and a mammoth 21 points behind the playoff positions. The losses of Jack Willis and club captain Joe Launchbury midway through the season to long term ACL injuries were telling. The drop off in the absence of the two most important players in the forward pack highlighted some big depth problems in that department. Off the back of their frustrating season, Wasps have made some savvy moves with the hope they can regain their form of two seasons ago.
Former England defence coach John Mitchell has joined the club as the attacking head coach ahead of the new season. Mitchell comes into the club looking to sharpen the blade, Wasps’ attacking threat has been their strong point over recent seasons, in fact despite finishing 8th place last year Wasps scored the 4th most points out of any club. Wasps prioritised landing Mitchell once it was confirmed he would leave the England set up, Blackett has expressed his excitement of Mitchell re-joining the club by recently saying that “finding someone of John’s calibre at both an international and domestic level is rare”.
Together with the staffing changes, Wasps have bolstered their forward pack with the key signings of Elliot Stooke (Bath) and Vaea Fifita (Hurricanes). Elliot Stooke comes into the squad looking to replace Welsh international Will Rowlands who moved to the Newport Dragons. Stooke will look to add his experience to the club as Wasps hope he can form a hard-nosed second row partnership with Joe Launchbury over the coming years. Vaea Fifita follows in the footsteps of Lima Sopoaga, Malakai Fekitoa, Jeff Toomaga-Allen and Brad Shields by moving across from New Zealand to join Wasps. The 11 time All Black brings an X factor to an already high profile back row. The power and speed of Fifita is scary and he utilises it to full effect brushing past opponents in the loose. The man is a monster and will no doubt get Wasps supporters up on their feet regularly this season. Along with the obvious talent, Fifita has the versatility to cover all 5 positions across the second and back row.
Despite the Fifita and Stooke scoops, in my eyes Wasps’ season hinges on how quickly Launchbury and Willis can return to full fitness. Launchbury is the anchor of the team as club captain. His impact on the field ranges from being the defensive and set-piece leader as well as bringing endless work-rate and an abundance of skills in the contact area. His presence is paramount to helping the forward pack set the base off which their young attack-minded backline can thrive off.
Jack Willis has become one of the best flankers in world rugby in my eyes, simply because he’s able to do things that not many other people can. Willis’s defensive presence paired with his brutal ball carrying and offloading ability are alone enough to make him a world class player, but the skills over the ball in the ruck are frighteningly good too. Willis’s jackalling abilities are as good as anyone in the World, so good that opposition teams have to plan on how to minimise the damage. With Willis’s injury occurring in February and Launchbury’s in April the hope is that both can be back before the end of the season, the question is can Wasps put themselves in a position where they are in playoff contention when the two are able to return hopefully as the game-changing players they were pre-injury. Even with the additions of Fifita and Stooke the losses of Will Rowlands, Tommy Taylor and Kieran Brookes, who were all the best in their respective positions at the club last season, combined with the uncertainty of Willis and Launchbury’s return date has me very sceptical on Wasps this year.