Ex-England centre among players rumoured for Gloucester exit

Rumours suggest that Gloucester could be set to lose at least two players to a new club made up of Ealing Trailfinders and the Ospreys.

Reports in the UK rugby community for several weeks suggest a merger between URC side the Ospreys and RFU Championship team Ealing Trailfinders is being seriously considered.

If the merger goes ahead, it would be a significant development in the rugby world, bringing together two clubs from two different leagues and countries. However, the details of the merger, including how it would work in practice and the potential impact on players and fans, are not yet clear.

Journalist Jon Newcombe writes that Gloucester could be set to lose Billy Twelvetrees and Jordy Reid to the newly formed club, suggesting the proposed merger is sufficiently advanced that recruitment is being talked about as a single entity as opposed to two separate clubs. "I’m hearing that Billy Twelvetrees and Jordy Reid to ‘Ealing/Ospreys’ is a done deal."

Twelvetrees had a brief but notable Test career for England, earning 22 caps between 2013 and 2015. He made his debut against Scotland in the 2013 Six Nations and was named man of the match in his second appearance against Ireland. However, his international career was cut short after England's disappointing performance at the 2015 Rugby World Cup, and he has not played for the national team since.

In the case of Reid, he would be returning to his former club, with the Sydney-born flanker initially arriving at Kingsholm from Ealing ahead of the 2020-21 season.

If they do leave they will not be alone. It was confirmed today that Jake Polledri will move to the URC with Zebre at the end of the season.

Polledri (27) signed for Gloucester from Hartpury RFC in the summer of 2017 and quickly became a first-team regular for the Cherry & Whites. He leaves after six years at the Gallagher Premiership side.