EXPEREINCED second row Nile Dacres wants to ‘help the team on and off the pitch’ as he becomes Rams’ fourth summer signing.
The 32-year-old, who won National One with Coventry and has also racked up plenty of Championship caps, makes the switch to Old Bath Road having played the past two seasons for C.P. Les Abelles in the Spanish Division of Honour.
And while the weather might be different when he returns to the UK, Dacres is relishing his new challenge.
He explained: “Winters here (Spain) are kind of like playing in summer – weather-wise I can’t complain and I’d always had the idea of playing abroad at some point. It felt like the right time.
“It’s been a great two seasons and there are some really good players – our fly-half Bautista Guemes has been playing regularly for Spain and a couple of guys are in the national Under 20s and Sevens.
“But when I knew I was coming back to England I came and had a look at the club a couple of months ago and could see the ambition, the way it’s set-up, and it just seems a great place to be.
“I can’t wait to meet the coaching staff and the players, and it’s always exciting to meet a new group of people – and when the time comes, especially the supporters. I’ve always been keen to get to know the fans.
“The position the club’s in, competing at the top end of National One, I’ve been there before with Plymouth and Coventry when we won the league, so it’s an interesting challenge and opportunity – I want to compete for a title again.”
The engine room enforcer has an impressive CV having started his career in the Worcester Warriors Academy, picking up loan time at Stourbridge and then in The Championship with Rotherham Titans.
He switched to Birmingham Moseley to remain at Level Two, then spending two years at Plymouth Albion, before spending an eventful half-a-decade at Coventry, taking on a handful of British Lions in the process.
Dacres continued: “When I arrived at Cov they’d made a few signings and were on a big push, we won the league so you couldn’t really complain – we were winning pretty much every week.
“The following year I ruptured my ACL in pre-season so I was re-habbing my knee for a lot of the time, but it was then good to taste that Championship level again.
“Covid then hit, but it was the year Saracens were in the league which was quite an experience.
“We played them once in a friendly and then in the league and you go down for a scrum and opposite you’ve got Jamie George, Mako Vunipola, Maro Itoje, Billy Vunipola, Owen Farrell in the backs – five or six guys who ended up being British Lions later that summer!”
And following his two years abroad, a rejuvenated Dacres has promised to do everything he can to help Rams try and better their past two runners-up finishes.
He concluded: “When you’ve played for a few years like I have, trying to pass on some advice comes hand-in-hand with that.
“You want to help the younger guys and anything I can do for the team, I will both on and off the pitch.
“I’m in a time of my career where I might have something half useful to say to the other guys hopefully it can be well received!
“I feel I’ve always been a good line-out operator, and I feel I’m quite athletic for a second row. I trust my handling skills and believe the old legs can still shift – I can’t wait to get started!”
