Championship players to watch out for in the Premiership

It may often get overlooked in comparison to the Aviva Premiership, but the Greene King IPA Championship has just enjoyed one of its best seasons to date, with the level of performance in the league as high as it has ever been.

To celebrate that fact, we have highlighted five of the most notable players who have made the decision to move to the Premiership next season and shine a light on what they have to offer their new sides in 2015/16.

Shaun Malton, Exeter Chiefs

Exeter have made a habit of picking up Championship front rowers and turning them into valuable contributors in the Premiership and Malton could well be next in that production line.

The South African-born hooker has been excellent for Nottingham since he moved to the club in 2012 and put in a fitting final season for the Green and Whites, making the Championship Dream XV and helping his side to an impressive fifth-place finish.

With Luke Cowan-Dickie pushing for a place with England and Elvis Taione likely to be involved with Tonga at the Rugby World Cup, Malton could have an early opportunity to impress at Sandy Park, likely backing up Jack Yeandle in the opening rounds of the Premiership season.

Mike Williams, Leicester Tigers

Worcester will be bitterly disappointed to lose Williams to Leicester, as the Zimbabwean was pivotal in their push for promotion and leaves a big void to be filled at Sixways.

A powerful lock who is also capable of packing down at blindside flanker, Williams was one of the best performers in the Championship last season and like Malton, made the Championship Dream XV. His size and ability to make yards around the fringes will help make him an instant success in the Premiership.

A product of the Blue Bulls, Williams is no stranger to competition in the engine room, but will have to be at his very best to get playing time at Welford Road, thanks to the enviable collection of locks Richard Cockerill has assembled in the East Midlands.

Tom Cruse, London Irish

The former Rotherham hooker arrives in Reading with every chance of seeing action early in his London Irish career.

Irish’s current starting hooker, David Paice, has been one of the most consistent performers in the Premiership over the last decade, but with Paice now the wrong side of 30, attention will switch at Irish to grooming his eventual successor.

Cruse has shown plenty of potential with Rotherham Titans in the Championship and though that does not guarantee success in the Premiership, a year or two learning behind Paice could see him develop into a top calibre hooker.

Paul Hill, Northampton Saints

The former Yorkshire Carnegie man was the standout of a very impressive England U20 all-Championship front row and his stock should continue to soar once he arrives at Franklin’s Gardens.

A phenomenally talented tighthead who is as blessed physically as he has been well-schooled technically, Hill has the capability to make an instant impact in the Premiership, despite still being a relatively tender 20 years of age.

Presuming Kieran Brookes makes the final cut for England’s RWC squad, Hill could find himself in a duel with Gareth Denman to start the season at tighthead and though smart money would be on the more experienced Denman, it would not be surprising at all to see Hill make an early impact.

Alex Rieder, Wasps

If Exeter have mastered the art of turning Championship front rowers into Premiership prospects, Wasps have done the same in the back row, and Rieder may be the pick of the Championship players they have acquired in recent years.

The third member of the Championship Dream XV making his way to the Premiership this season, Rieder was also nominated for the Championship Player of the Year, and although he ultimately missed out to Bristol’s Matthew Morgan, he would have been a worthy winner.

An all-purpose flanker, Rieder will have to work extremely hard to break into Wasps’ talented back row, but with Ashley Johnson likely moving to hooker and James Haskell possibly at the RWC with England, the former Rotherham Titan could get an early opportunity to impress like Malton and Hill.

Charlie Mulchrone, Worcester Warriors

Mulchrone may not be moving to a new club this summer, but he will be getting his first opportunity to impress in the Premiership following Worcester’s promotion to the top tier. A former stalwart of Rotherham Titans, Worcester reportedly saw off interest from a number of Premiership teams to secure Mulchrone’s services for the 2014/15 season.

The younger brother of Fergus Mulchrone, a centre at London Irish, Charlie is a livewire scrum-half who was the heartbeat of Worcester’s high-tempo playing style last season in the Championship and is more than capable of injecting a similar impetuous when he steps up to the next level.

Any Championship team that gets promoted usually has to invest heavily to ensure their starting XV is at a level to compete in the top tier, but in Mulchrone Worcester have a ready-made Premiership-calibre scrum-half.