By George! Coach Skiverton has got big plans in place
GEORGE Skivington marked his new longterm contract with Gloucester by declaring his intent to make the club a regular contender for the Premiership title.
Skivington is in his second full season as Gloucester’s head coach after taking over in the summer of 2020. They are in contention for a play-off spot with one round to go, if not in charge of their own destiny, a significant improvement on last season when they finished 11th.
But Skivington, right, who signed his new deal last week, said Gloucester had a long way to go and said that ultimately he would be satisfied not with finishing in the top six or making the play-off positions but winning the league.
“I have a long list of what I want us to be better at,” said Skivington. “It is a funny lifestyle being a head coach. The day after we beat Bath 64-0, I was not happy, which left my wife seriously questioning me.
“I was happy with the result but I did not learn anything from the game, unlike our next match at home to Saracens in the European Challenge Cup when they brought a great intensity to what they did and showed us what we needed to do.”
Saracens return to Kingsholm on Saturday on the final weekend of the regular season. Gloucester need to win to have a chance of finishing fourth and hope that Northampton fall to Newcastle at Franklin’s Gardens.
“It was a tough couple of days after Saracens beat us,” said Skivington. “It showed we are not close to where we want to be, but equally we have made progress in two years. We are well aware of the parts of our game we need to improve and there will be no patting ourselves on the back if we do not come away with anything this season. “We can acknowledge our progress but the question is how can we move on. If you make the top four in a ridiculously competitive league, you have done well. I want us to be at the top end, not aiming for the top six, and that means adding more strings to our bow and being able to play the game in a number of ways.” Gloucester did not have one player in the England squad that trained in Richmond earlier this month with skipper Lewis Ludlow and centre Mark Atkinson not called on having been involved in training during the Six Nations. “I was disappointed with that,” said Skivington, who has met with England head coach Eddie Jones to learn what his players need to do to earn a call-up. “I won’t lie, I thought we would have a couple in there and all the players can do is roll up their sleeves and try and change his mind.
“Perhaps there was a perception of us after we finished 11th, but I hope that has changed. The bottom line for players is that they have to play well for the club and I am sure that in the coming seasons we will have a few with England.
“What we’ve done over the last couple of years is to lay really good foundations. We’ve grown the way we play and the culture so that everyone knows what’s expected of them day to day. There is huge untapped potential and that is massively exciting.”
At 39, Skivington is one of a clutch of young Premiership head coaches. “We’ve been delighted with what George has brought to the club,” said Gloucester’s chief executive, Lance Bradley. “We have a long-term vision for success both on and off the field, and George continues to make a significant contribution towards that.”