“We’ve definitely added quality” - Grix happy with how Fax are shaping up ahead of 2021 campaign

Fax coach Simon Grix says he is happy with his squad as their preparations for next year’s Championship campaign continue.
Simon GrixSimon Grix
Simon Grix

Grix has added eight new faces to his squad for the 2021 season, and is excited at what his new-look squad could be capable of.

“Obviously the lads who are staying have taken pay cuts, all the staff have taken cuts to remain together as a group,” he said.

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“We’ve had some nice additions alongside that. Based on the budget we’ve got I think we’ve done well.

“We’re still up against it if you look at it in finance terms with what we’re going to compete with but on paper I’m happy with where we’re at.

“I’m really looking forward to it. I think in some ways, this Covid scenario has probably created the perfect storm in the sense of people being excited to get back to the rugby.

“I don’t think there could probably be a better time to do this rebrand to be honest.”

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Grix added: “I definitely feel like we’ve improved. We’re a younger squad. We’ve lost a couple of club stalwarts and a bit of experience but I’m excited by that because other people now get the opportunity to step up and grow as characters within the team.

“We’ve trained a couple of times now and there’s a good feel about things.

“The early signs are good, and now we’ll start getting a feel of what we want to be and set some goals and hold each other accountable towards them.

“We’ve definitely added quality, we’ve got some depth in areas we hadn’t in the past, and probably attracted some names because of the Covid scenario, with Toronto going bump, people like Gadwin Springer and Greg Worthington.

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“They probably weren’t on our radar, but the perfect storm has probably benefited the club that players have become available who we probably wouldn’t have been in the market for in the past and were out of our reach.

“I’m excited to see how the team develops.”

Grix didn’t rule out the possibility of adding further to his squad.

“If we were to finish it now, I’d be pretty happy,” he said.

“There’s a couple of rumblings in the background where we’ve got our eyes on what’s happening.

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“If the right player comes along at the right price, we may make a move.”

On how preparations for the upcoming Championship campaign are going, Grix said: “We’ve started pre-season but we’re a long way off games yet.

“We’re up against it, I think all Championship sides are, because we’re classed as a tier two level of sport so we’re only allowed to train a couple of times a week at the minute, due to the Covid restrictions.

“So it’s a challenge, but as our performance coach Damian Clayton would say, you’ve got to adapt and overcome.

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“We’re doing the best with what we’ve got and the lads are on board with doing things in their own time as well.

”It is what it is at the minute and hopefully, after Christmas, things start lifting and we can get back to a more normal routine and prepare ourselves for rugby properly.

“At the minute it’s not quite enough in terms of contact time so we’re relying on lads being accountable themselves and making sure they stay on top of their physical condition.”

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