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Bristol swoop for Lovejoy Chawatama as Kyle Sinckler's replacement
By Jon Newcombe
Bristol have secured the signature of Harlequins prop Lovejoy Chawatama, filling the vacancy that will be left by the touted end-of-season exit of tighthead Kyle Sinckler to the Top 14.
Bears director of rugby Pat Lam had been keen on bringing Chawatama to Ashton Gate ever since the front-rower’s former club, London Irish, went into administration at the end of last season.
At the time, Chawatama opted to sign for Harlequins but the 31-year-old from Zimbabwe has now committed to Bristol, who need a replacement for the France-bound Sinckler.
Chawatama was a mainstay of the London Irish team in their swansong Premiership season in 2022/23, making 18 league appearances.
The tighthead has since struggled for game time at Harlequins, only taking the field on seven occasions in all competitions this season.
Chawatama is no stranger to the West Country having had a brief spell in the National Leagues with Clifton while he was studying construction project management at the University of the West of England in Bristol.
Meanwhile, it was confirmed on Tuesday that Callum Sheedy, the Bears' long-serving No10, will join Cardiff next season to reignite his stalled international career with Wales.
Sheedy joined the Bristol academy in 2014 before graduating to the first-team squad, going on to make his international debut for Wales in 2020.
The 28-year-old has scored 1,165 points for Bristol during his 178 appearances, making him the club’s sixth-highest points scorer of all time.
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It has taken 15 years to build the participation of rugby both in playing and watching. For South Africa on its own to build a viable international rugby competition in africa will take generations - not decades. New Zealanders seem to resent the fact that SA has doubled the income of the URC since their inclusion. If New Zealand Rugby hadn't insisted on have a disproportionate slice of the pie in Super Rugby, SA might not have fled the coop.
Go to commentsDon't think you've watched enough. I'll take him over anything I's seen so far. But let's see how the future pans out. I'm quietly confident we have a row of 10's lined uo who would each start in many really good teams.
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