Steffon Armitage? We’d take him, says Dallaglio

A move by Wasps to sign Steffon Armitage would make sense to everyone involved according to club legend Lawrence Dallaglio.
Wasps boss Dai Young is looking for a replacement for openside George Smith who is off to Japan at the end of the season and there have been enquires about the English flanker who has spent the last five seasons with Toulon in France.
The issue for Wasps is that the 30-year-old has one year left in his lucrative contract with Toulon but Dallaglio reckons bringing him back is not “insurmountable”.
He told The Rugby Paper: “I’m not sure you can replace a player like George Smith but Steffon would be a very good effort.
“He must have some international aspirations still but we all know that means you have to be playing in England.
“If the deal was to happen it would make sense for Steffon as a person, it would make sense for the club and it would make sense for England.
“It is nice to hear his name being linked with Wasps and you can understand the logic behind the move but he is a Toulon player and we must be respectful of that.”
One player who will definitely join Wasps next season is Danny Cipriani who will return to the club after six seasons playing with the Melbourne Rebels and Sale Sharks.
A Heineken Cup and Premiership winner alongside Dallaglio in 2007 and 2008, Cipriani went on a downward spiral with off-field incidents grabbing the headlines.
But he has let his rugby for Sharks do the talking over the past two seasons and played a crucial role in them securing a Champions Cup spot next season.
Dallaglio said: “Wasps have always been known as an orphanage for waifs and strays and I hope that continues to be the case. Danny has really put his head down over the last few years and he’s worked very hard.
“He’s proved his quality and he’s been a key reason why Sale have overachieved this season.
“He’s capable of doing things on a rugby field that excite the crowd. It’s nice for Wasps to have him back and it’s a nice story.
“But make no mistake it’s not a story about him being nice, it’s about him wanting to put himself in one of the best possible teams to get selected for England.”

Dallaglio is the last man to have lifted a trophy for Wasps in 2008 before the club went on the brink of relegation and bankruptcy four years later.
But they have found a new lease of life under director of rugby Dai Young and new owner Derek Richardson, having already played in the Champions Cup semi-finals  and next week will travel to Exeter Chiefs in the Premiership semi-finals.
“Wasps have taken a big step forward this season. It’s been an unbelievable journey both on and off the pitch,” Dallaglio said.
“What they’ve done over the past three or four years has been incredible and for me personally to see them back at the top end of Europe is a huge achievement.”
“No one gave them a chance in that European pool but they managed to go through and even book a home quarter-final.
“They’ve taken that form into the Premiership and they’ve shown great consistency which proves how far they’ve come.
“They have a tough task in their hands now, however, because history shows that the home teams tend to win the Premiership semi-finals.
“But they’ve given themselves the opportunity to be there and they’re in with a shout.
“It’ll be tough to win the Premiership coming from third in the table but it’s been done before.”
NICK VERDIER
*The Samsung Slider was welcomed into London by Lawrence Dallaglio, Johnathan Joseph and Joe Launchbury ahead of its debut at Twickenham Stadium for the HSBC London Sevens. The Samsung Slider gets fans closer to the action than ever before. To find out more follow the Samsung Sport social channels – Twitter @SamsungSport and Facebook.com/SamsungSport.