David Strettle
Encyclopedia
David Strettle, is an English rugby union
player who plays on the wing for Saracens
and England
.
, Cheshire
, attending Lymm High School
and playing for Lymm RFC. Strettle then went on to study at Sheffield Hallam University
. Although Strettle is leaving Harlequins, he has stated that the support he has been given from everyone involved since he arrived at the Stoop has been exceptional. He will be playing for Saracens
as of the 2010–11 season.
, and made his club debut in the pre-season friendly against ASM Clermont
on 6 August of that year.
As a teenager, he was a talented footballer, appearing on the books of Liverpool FC
, Manchester City
and Crewe Alexandra
. He was also a keen rugby league
fan.
Strettle scored a hat trick on his Rotherham debut against Rugby Lions and made his Premiership debut for the Titans against Bath in October 2003. He was Rotherham's top try-scorer in National One in the 2004–05 season scoring 18 tries in 22 appearances.
Strettle is known as "Ducks" at Harlequins after David Duckham
, a player to whom Strettle has drawn comparison, and was touted as a future England winger. He recently scored a hat trick in the game against Newcastle Falcons and was included in the England Saxons
squad for the team's games against Italy
and Ireland
, scoring in both games.
Strettle was also a regular in the England sevens
squad throughout the 2005/06 IRB World Seven Series. He won a surprise call up to the England starting XV for its 2007 Six Nations game against Ireland at Croke Park
in the place of the injured Jason Robinson
, and scored England's only try in the 43–13 defeat. He also started in the win over France and the defeat to Wales.
On 2 May 2007, Strettle was named as the Professional Rugby Player's Association Young Player of the Season. He was also named in the Sky Sports Dream Team for the Guinness Premiership season 2006–07, along with fellow Harlequin and England hopeful Mike Brown.
Also in May 2007, Strettle was named in the England Rugby squad to tour South Africa. Unfortunately, he came down with food poising along with other members of the squad, which prevented him from starting in England's 58–10 record defeat to South Africa.
On 16 August 2007, a confusing article appeared on Harlequins official site. It seems to suggest that Strettle had crossed codes and signed for Harlequins Rugby League. The basis of the story was that he is also a registered Harlequins Rugby League club player, as many players in Harlequins Rugby Union
side are.
He returned to play for Harlequins after recovering from the injury that put him out of the 2007 Rugby World Cup
and was called up to the England
squad for the 2008 Six Nations Championship
. He started the game against Wales but was withdrawn early on following a metatarsal break, which ruled him out of the rest of the tournament.
It was announced on 25 March 2010 that he will be playing rugby for Saracens from next season.
Strettle is an aficionado of Football Manager
, and sees himself as having the knack for "picking up players on the cheap and turning them into the new Rooney
or Henry
". This was an idea he floated to the Saracens coaching staff after a serious injury injury to flyhalf Derick Hougaard and resulted in Venter bringing in Owen Farrell at 10. He recently boasted of his ability to turn West Ham
into a top European team within 2 to 3 seasons, while also stating that he was a "world class football manager".
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
player who plays on the wing for Saracens
Saracens F.C.
Saracens are a professional rugby union team based in St. Albans, England – although they play their home games at Vicarage Road, in Watford. They are currently members of the Aviva Premiership, the top level of domestic rugby union in England...
and England
England national rugby union team
The England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...
.
Biography
Strettle grew up in ThelwallThelwall
Thelwall is a suburban village in Warrington, North Cheshire, England, close to the Lymm junction of the M6.-Geography:Thelwall nowadays borders the villages of Lymm and Grappenhall, and , Latchford. It is also one of the two principal settlements of Grappenhall and Thelwall civil parish...
, Cheshire
Cheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
, attending Lymm High School
Lymm High School
Lymm High School is an English comprehensive school, located in Lymm, Warrington, Cheshire, of which the grammar school part had a history stretching back to the late 16th century...
and playing for Lymm RFC. Strettle then went on to study at Sheffield Hallam University
Sheffield Hallam University
Sheffield Hallam University is a higher education institution in South Yorkshire, England, based on two sites in Sheffield. City Campus is located in the city centre, close to Sheffield railway station, and Collegiate Crescent Campus is about two miles away, adjacent to Ecclesall Road in...
. Although Strettle is leaving Harlequins, he has stated that the support he has been given from everyone involved since he arrived at the Stoop has been exceptional. He will be playing for Saracens
Saracens F.C.
Saracens are a professional rugby union team based in St. Albans, England – although they play their home games at Vicarage Road, in Watford. They are currently members of the Aviva Premiership, the top level of domestic rugby union in England...
as of the 2010–11 season.
Career
In the summer of 2006, Strettle joined the Harlequins from RotherhamRotherham R.U.F.C.
Rotherham Rugby Union Football Club, or Rotherham Titans are a professional rugby union team from Rotherham, Yorkshire, currently playing in the English RFU Championship-History:...
, and made his club debut in the pre-season friendly against ASM Clermont
ASM Clermont Auvergne
Association Sportive Montferrandaise Clermont Auvergne are a French rugby union club from Clermont-Ferrand in Auvergne that currently competes in Top 14, the top level of the French league system, ASMCA are the were the 2010 France Top 14 Champions. It is the rugby section of the multi-sport club...
on 6 August of that year.
As a teenager, he was a talented footballer, appearing on the books of Liverpool FC
Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups...
, Manchester City
Manchester City F.C.
Manchester City Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Manchester. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's , they became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894...
and Crewe Alexandra
Crewe Alexandra F.C.
Crewe Alexandra Football Club is an English professional football club based in Crewe, Cheshire. Nicknamed The Railwaymen due to the town's links with the rail industry, they currently play in Football League Two, the fourth tier of English football, and are based at the Alexandra Stadium.The club...
. He was also a keen rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
fan.
Strettle scored a hat trick on his Rotherham debut against Rugby Lions and made his Premiership debut for the Titans against Bath in October 2003. He was Rotherham's top try-scorer in National One in the 2004–05 season scoring 18 tries in 22 appearances.
Strettle is known as "Ducks" at Harlequins after David Duckham
David Duckham
David John Duckham MBE is a retired English rugby union player. He played 36 games for England from 1969 to 1976 and scored 10 tries. Duckham made his debut at centre, partnering John Spencer against Ireland in 1969...
, a player to whom Strettle has drawn comparison, and was touted as a future England winger. He recently scored a hat trick in the game against Newcastle Falcons and was included in the England Saxons
England Saxons
England Saxons is the current name of England's men's second national rugby union team. The team has previously been known by a number of names, such as England B, Emerging England and, most recently, England A...
squad for the team's games against Italy
Italy national rugby union team
The Italy national rugby union team represent the nation of Italy in the sport of rugby union. The team is also known as the Azzurri . Italy have been playing international rugby since the late 1920s, and since 2000 compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland,...
and Ireland
Ireland national rugby union team
The Ireland national rugby union team represents the island of Ireland in rugby union. The team competes annually in the Six Nations Championship and every four years in the Rugby World Cup, where they reached the quarter-final stage in all but two competitions The Ireland national rugby union...
, scoring in both games.
Strettle was also a regular in the England sevens
England national rugby union team (sevens)
The English national rugby union sevens team compete in the World Sevens Series, Rugby World Cup Sevens and the Commonwealth Games.-Honours:* 1973 International Seven-A-Side Tournament - Winners* Rugby World Cup Sevens Winners 1993* Hong Kong Sevens Winners 2002* Hong Kong Sevens Winners 2003*...
squad throughout the 2005/06 IRB World Seven Series. He won a surprise call up to the England starting XV for its 2007 Six Nations game against Ireland at Croke Park
Croke Park
Croke Park in Dublin is the principal stadium and headquarters of the Gaelic Athletic Association , Ireland's biggest sporting organisation...
in the place of the injured Jason Robinson
Jason Robinson
Jason Thorpe Robinson OBE is an English former international rugby union and rugby league player of the 1990s and 2000s. Playing at wing or fullback, he won fifty-one rugby union international test caps in total for England, and in rugby league he won twelve caps for Great Britain and seven for...
, and scored England's only try in the 43–13 defeat. He also started in the win over France and the defeat to Wales.
On 2 May 2007, Strettle was named as the Professional Rugby Player's Association Young Player of the Season. He was also named in the Sky Sports Dream Team for the Guinness Premiership season 2006–07, along with fellow Harlequin and England hopeful Mike Brown.
Also in May 2007, Strettle was named in the England Rugby squad to tour South Africa. Unfortunately, he came down with food poising along with other members of the squad, which prevented him from starting in England's 58–10 record defeat to South Africa.
On 16 August 2007, a confusing article appeared on Harlequins official site. It seems to suggest that Strettle had crossed codes and signed for Harlequins Rugby League. The basis of the story was that he is also a registered Harlequins Rugby League club player, as many players in Harlequins Rugby Union
Harlequin F.C.
The Harlequin Football Club is an English rugby union team who play in the top level of English rugby, the Aviva Premiership. Their ground in London is Twickenham Stoop...
side are.
He returned to play for Harlequins after recovering from the injury that put him out of the 2007 Rugby World Cup
2007 Rugby World Cup
The 2007 Rugby World Cup was the sixth Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. Twenty nations competed for the Webb Ellis Cup in the tournament, which was hosted by France from 7 September to 20 October. France won the hosting rights in 2003,...
and was called up to the England
England national rugby union team
The England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...
squad for the 2008 Six Nations Championship
2008 Six Nations Championship
The 2008 Six Nations Championship, known as the 2008 RBS 6 Nations because of the tournament's sponsorship by the Royal Bank of Scotland, was the ninth series of the rugby union Six Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the 114th...
. He started the game against Wales but was withdrawn early on following a metatarsal break, which ruled him out of the rest of the tournament.
It was announced on 25 March 2010 that he will be playing rugby for Saracens from next season.
Personal life
In June 2008, while on tour to New Zealand, Strettle was said to have been involved in a "rampant night of passion" with part-time model Sophie Lewis. An RFU investigation found Strettle not guilty of any misconduct but he was warned "to be careful in future not to put himself in any compromising situations which may lead to him bringing the game into disrepute".Strettle is an aficionado of Football Manager
Football Manager
Football Manager is a series of football management simulation games developed by Sports Interactive and published by Sega. The game began its life in 1992 as Championship Manager; however, following the break-up of their partnership with original publishers Eidos Interactive, Sports Interactive...
, and sees himself as having the knack for "picking up players on the cheap and turning them into the new Rooney
Wayne Rooney
Wayne Mark Rooney is an English footballer who plays as a striker for Premier League club Manchester United and the England national team...
or Henry
Thierry Henry
Thierry Daniel Henry is a French professional footballer who plays for the New York Red Bulls in Major League Soccer.Henry was born in Les Ulis, Essonne where he played for an array of local sides as a youngster and showed great promise as a goal-scorer. He was spotted by AS Monaco in 1990 and...
". This was an idea he floated to the Saracens coaching staff after a serious injury injury to flyhalf Derick Hougaard and resulted in Venter bringing in Owen Farrell at 10. He recently boasted of his ability to turn West Ham
West Ham United F.C.
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London. They play in The Football League Championship. The club was founded in 1895 as Thames Ironworks FC and reformed in 1900 as West Ham United. In 1904 the club relocated to their current...
into a top European team within 2 to 3 seasons, while also stating that he was a "world class football manager".