New contracts for key Gloucester trio

Gloucester back-row pair Jake Polledri and Ruan Ackermann have joined loosehead prop Val Rapava-Ruskin in signing new deals with the club.

Flanker Polledri joined the Cherry and Whites at the beginning of the 2017/18 season after impressing for Hartpury RFC in their National One winning campaign.

He has since experienced a rapid rise to the top of the game, winning international honours with Italy, and is one of the most exciting young players in the world game.

Despite his initial first contract with the club running until the end of the 2019/20 season, the club have been quick to secure Polledri’s services well beyond that date and have agreed an extension.

Joining Polledri in agreeing a new deal is South African back-rower Ackermann, the son of head coach Johan, who agrees a new deal as he looks ahead to his third season in Cherry and White.

Having moved to England shortly before the start of the 2017/18 season, the former Lions flanker has been a key part of the Cherry and White squad over the past two seasons, and his form saw him pick up the Premiership Player of the Month award in November 2017.

The 23-year old is part of a hugely exciting group of young, dynamic back-rowers at the club, and has made 34 appearances so far in Cherry and White, scoring five tries, including a brace in the West Country derby clash against Bath in September.

The third player confirmed to agree a new deal with the club recently is prop Rapava-Ruskin. The Georgian-born forward is a destructive scrummager and offers a huge presence around the park.

Loosehead prop Rapava-Ruskin is nearing a return to competitive action after missing out since mid-December when he suffered a calf injury ahead of the Champions Cup fixture at Exeter.