Jersey Rugby Football Club are pleased to announce that new
signing Alex Rae will take on the Club captaincy for the 2013/14
season.
Despite being a newcomer to the team, Rae's vast experience at
Championship and Premiership level will help him guide the team in
their most exciting season yet. The 27-year-old second-row forward,
who represented London Wasps last term, was Director of Rugby Ben
Harvey's first choice for the post.
Rae said, "It's a huge honour to captain any team at this level
and even more so to lead Jersey. Ben (Harvey) emphasised to us that
it's more like representing a country when playing for the Island
and that a great deal of responsibility comes with that".
"I've settled in really well and get on with everyone here so
it's been a really easy transition. I'm not a massive talker,
but if something needs to be said then I'll say it. I think the
things you do around the Club and how you portray yourself on the
pitch say a lot, so I'm going to be more about actions than
speaking needlessly".
Rae added, "I will be setting myself targets, but in term of
results we will be taking every match as it comes. As a team we
need to be at our best to compete in every match at this level and
to do that we must individually get our own jobs right. Being
captain doesn't guarantee you play so I need to concentrate on my
playing role to nail down a spot in a very competitive side which
isn't going to be easy".
"I hope that my experiences will make a difference to the team
and this year we've signed a few boys who have great experience.
You can see when we're training that the older boys and the leaders
of the group step up quite a bit and help the younger ones
along".
The former England Sevens international spent almost four
seasons with Bedford Blues before his short spell with London Wasps
last season. Rae has previously represented England at U18, U19 and
U21 age levels, but believes leading Jersey is his biggest
achievement in the game thus far.
"The captaincy means a lot and shows that Ben has placed a huge
amount of trust in me. It's one of my greatest achievements, but
it's not really a one man job - there are about five boys who are
all leaders really within the group so that helps a lot. We're all
really excited about the season now and hopefully as a group we can
lead Jersey to a bright future".
"I also feel one of the main roles of captaincy is to help
develop to youngsters, and that is essential at a Club like Jersey,
hopefully I can help the lads like James Voss and shortly he will
be knocking me out of the team".
Rae's first test will be against Leicester Tigers on August 24th
when the big kick off gets underway at 3pm.
Tickets are available to buy now from the club shop between 10am
- 1pm on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. Tickets are also
available from: The Jersey Evening Post offices at Five Oaks 8.30am
- 5pm Monday to Friday and, Red Properties on the Esplanade, Monday
to Friday 9am - 5pm.
