Matera

[RWA]

http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Leice ... story.html

Interesting piece on Matera and how he has suffered with being homesick etc. Marcos was worried about him but he seems to have settled down a bit. Clearly a quality player who can only get better. I just hope he can cope with being at Tigers.

[kpj tiger]

A little worrying but hopefully he can get over his homesickness and stay at Leicester for many years to come

[youngtiger]

By the sounds of it he's starting to adjust to such a massive change, and I can definitely empathise with struggling after being confronted with such a different atmosphere.

Marcos seems like an absolutely perfect mentor- mature, calm bloke who goes about his business with little pomp & ceremony despite being world class.

[tigercaspian]

Don't be surprised that Matera is unsettled. Look at the thread for "Sexton feels a bit tired" as well.
If moving your home around is one of the three most stressful events in life, the added burden of moving country - new language, everything's on the wrong side of the road etc etc - is an even bigger weight.
One of the reasons that Loffreda failed here is that he & family didn't get enough support when they came to Leicester : it's not enough with an international job transfer like that to speak 'rugby' , there's a whole load of other things that need to go with it & be supported.
And that's before we take the :censored: weather in to account for those who come from warmer climes!!

[G.K]

All together now ahhhh. I have lived and worked in several countries without any support structure at all from the places I've worked or from anywhere else. However these big tough Rugby players are a bit homesick and miss their mummys? I suggest they grow some.

[tigercaspian]

It's a fact. I do it for a living. Seen too many assignments go wrong as a result . Waste of talent and a waste of the employers money.
Looks like Cockers let him go back to his Mum for three weeks though so looks like things have moved on from Stanley & Livingstone !

[sapajo]

It's a fact. I do it for a living. Seen too many assignments go wrong as a result . Waste of talent and a waste of the employers money.
Looks like Cockers let him go back to his Mum for three weeks though so looks like things have moved on from Stanley & Livingstone !

Indeed things have thankfully moved on, bottom line is if you do not support and help him he may vote with his feet.

[mol2]

Probably not helped by not playing?

[kornboy130]

Probably not helped by not playing?

I think the fact he's still adapting as per the article, and had 3 weeks at home, answers that - no?

[SilebyTiger]

Can't believe some of the ignorant rubbish I'm reading on here. This is a 20 year old who's obviously lived at home for all of his life. For a student moving to a city 50 miles away, it takes some adjusting so just imagine what it's like moving across the world to a place where nobody speaks your language.

[kingol22]

Think it is very good that Cockers is giving him the time to get settled, also good to see that Ayerza is taking him under his wing. He has the potential to be a very very good player and giving him this kind of support now will hopefully stop him looking for the big money too soon.

[youngtiger]

Can't believe some of the ignorant rubbish I'm reading on here. This is a 20 year old who's obviously lived at home for all of his life. For a student moving to a city 50 miles away, it takes some adjusting so just imagine what it's like moving across the world to a place where nobody speaks your language.

Well said.

GK, if it happens to be the case that you moved across the world aged 19 into a foreign (in various senses) and high-pressure environment, and happened to deal with it like a duck to water, then well done you. But to expect that of all others, and then deride them when that isn't the case, is pretty unsupportive for someone posting on a supporters forum.

[strawclearer]

The only thing I exercise these days is ‘caution’ and the four letter word for what Mrs Strawclearer and I do in bed is ‘r-e-a-d’ but I can still recall the emotional trauma when, many years ago, I too was sent to a foreign city to start my professional career.

Like Pablo, I was 20 years old; I knew nothing of the culture and could not speak (or even understand) the language.

Just as Pablo has his Marcos and his Cockers, so I had a fellow Englishman who ‘knew the ropes’ and introduced me to my fellow workers together with a sympathetic manager who looked out for me.

The turning point in my acclimatisation process came when the indigenous population made it clear to me (through guttural mumblings, gestures and cave art) that I was welcome – that they considered me to be one of them. It was this that removed the last vestiges of homesickness and allowed me to flourish both personally and professionally!

So – through this forum and beyond – we need to let Pablo know that we’re thrilled to have him with us; that he’s ‘one of us’; and that, indeed, he is a Tiger!

The foreign city I went to? Glasgow.

[sapajo]

The only thing I exercise these days is ‘caution’ and the four letter word for what Mrs Strawclearer and I do in bed is ‘r-e-a-d’ but I can still recall the emotional trauma when, many years ago, I too was sent to a foreign city to start my professional career.

Like Pablo, I was 20 years old; I knew nothing of the culture and could not speak (or even understand) the language.

Just as Pablo has his Marcos and his Cockers, so I had a fellow Englishman who ‘knew the ropes’ and introduced me to my fellow workers together with a sympathetic manager who looked out for me.

The turning point in my acclimatisation process came when the indigenous population made it clear to me (through guttural mumblings, gestures and cave art) that I was welcome – that they considered me to be one of them. It was this that removed the last vestiges of homesickness and allowed me to flourish both personally and professionally!

So – through this forum and beyond – we need to let Pablo know that we’re thrilled to have him with us; that he’s ‘one of us’; and that, indeed, he is a Tiger!

The foreign city I went to? Glasgow.

Excellent post Totally agree we must indeed let Pablo know that we’re thrilled to have him with us; that he’s ‘one of us’; and that, indeed, he is a Tiger!

I encourage us all to do so and help him

[Big Dai]

The only thing I exercise these days is ‘caution’ and the four letter word for what Mrs Strawclearer and I do in bed is ‘r-e-a-d’ but I can still recall the emotional trauma when, many years ago, I too was sent to a foreign city to start my professional career.

Like Pablo, I was 20 years old; I knew nothing of the culture and could not speak (or even understand) the language.

Just as Pablo has his Marcos and his Cockers, so I had a fellow Englishman who ‘knew the ropes’ and introduced me to my fellow workers together with a sympathetic manager who looked out for me.

The turning point in my acclimatisation process came when the indigenous population made it clear to me (through guttural mumblings, gestures and cave art) that I was welcome – that they considered me to be one of them. It was this that removed the last vestiges of homesickness and allowed me to flourish both personally and professionally!

So – through this forum and beyond – we need to let Pablo know that we’re thrilled to have him with us; that he’s ‘one of us’; and that, indeed, he is a Tiger!

The foreign city I went to? Glasgow.

Excellent post Totally agree we must indeed let Pablo know that we’re thrilled to have him with us; that he’s ‘one of us’; and that, indeed, he is a Tiger!

I encourage us all to do so and help him

I'm the best part of 56 years old. I live in a foreign land that's getting more foreign by the week. I've worked in France, Germany, Sweden and the USA. I miss being greeted by "Me Duck", Discussing the ups and downs of life with the old man over a pint of Tiger, Bradgate Park walks and the places that were home in my youth. I know how he feels. Give the lad some support. (As others did to me when I worked abroad.)