Thank You Freddie Burns

[Qbec]

Freddie: You are a gent & a true Tiger you have proved to others who doubted you by your determination to improve in whatever area you saw as needing to be so, even at your own expense. That & your commitment to the Tigers shirt puts you in the postion in my mind as being one of the few that have really come to this club of ours & made yourself an out & out Tiger.

I salute you Freddie & thank you for all the past, present & reminder of this season.

[Soggypitch]

..and from the man himself:

"From the bottom of my heart I'd like the thank both the Tigers and Bath Rugby supporters for the messages I have received. Today a childhood dream has been realised. Next season I will get to run out for my hometown club. Bath is a club that matches my ambition to win and I'm excited for what lays ahead with them as well as trying to bring a successful end to my time at Tigers. I hold the coaches, players and, especially, the supporters at Tigers in the highest regard and will always be thankful for the chance to represent this club. I'll be 100% committed till my last day as a tiger.

Thank you!"

You can't be fairer than that. Also it doesn't sound like a tweet from someone that was forced out!

[Doghashadhisday]

..and from the man himself:

"From the bottom of my heart I'd like the thank both the Tigers and Bath Rugby supporters for the messages I have received. Today a childhood dream has been realised. Next season I will get to run out for my hometown club. Bath is a club that matches my ambition to win and I'm excited for what lays ahead with them as well as trying to bring a successful end to my time at Tigers. I hold the coaches, players and, especially, the supporters at Tigers in the highest regard and will always be thankful for the chance to represent this club. I'll be 100% committed till my last day as a tiger.

Thank you!"

You can't be fairer than that. Also it doesn't sound like a tweet from someone that was forced out!

Alternative view is that he has to put a spin on it. Can you imagine the reaction of Bath if he said he never wanted to go there and he was forced to play for them.

[BFG]

Looks like Freddie has decided to get on with it and move on very quickly.
Probably a great relief to have it done and dusted!
Good luck to him, I also think he could be a good fit for Bath who have some incredible pace in their backs.

[MurphysLaw]

[quote="Cagey Tiger"]Really sad to see him go as well. Can understand why. Has more of a chance of being first choice at Bath than here. He worked hard at getting better and did get better.[/quote]

CT, I agree with you on being sad to see Freddie go,especially he has overcome injury and has shown great character to work away in difficult times. However, I am not so sure about him having more chance of being first choice at Bath. Assuming Ford continues to be picked in the England group he would have had ample opportunity to stake his claim . I think that Priestland has done just that for Bath recently. He has put in some fairly impressive performances and seems to have settled into the Bath team.

[Big Dai]

Good luck with the new venture. (But not too much!) And thanks for all your hard work and effort here.

[pipkoi]

I think Freddie Burns has given his all for the Tigers this season despite the team playing badly. I dont think he has given up trying and with Thompstone has been consistent. I for one wish him well at Bath and sorry to see him go. Let's cheer Freddie for his final games for Tigers.

Can't say it better good bye Freddie

[Clowbeck]

Genuinely gutted that rumors over past couple of weeks have now been confirmed. Our loss is Bath's gain. Going to miss the flair and wow moments, even if they didnt always come off. Hope to see Freddie return to Tigers in some sort of capacity in the future but expect with a character as big as his he has a successful media career ahead once he hangs up boots.

[richardssalex]

All this talk of being a 'true Tiger' is so vague and soft. Such a mentality is why this club has lost its winning mentality top to bottom. Freddie Burns wasn't a winner. Personally more sad to see Owen Williams leave.

[strawclearer]

All this talk of being a 'true Tiger' is so vague and soft. Such a mentality is why this club has lost its winning mentality top to bottom.

I think you'll find most supporters see being a 'true Tiger' as a representation of 'commitment'. They would tell you that, without it, you can't have success in anything whether it be in business, sport, a hobby or a relationship. Far from being 'vague and soft', such commitment requires judgment, decision and a determination not to accept excuses; only results. You're perhaps confusing commitment with 'interest' - where you only take personal action when it's convenient.

Many here feel that Freddie Burns displayed such commitment - on and off the field. That's maybe why the Crumbie gave him the rare but, imho, deserved accolade of chanting his name as he left the field a little while ago. He described it today as " My proudest moment. Won't forget it" - so I think he understands what being a 'True Tiger' means.

Freddie Burns wasn't a winner.

Well - he's a Premiership fly-half who's clearly in demand and who's represented his country. He's also respected by colleagues and fans and seemingly has a strong family bond. Of course, it's up to each of us to define 'winning and losing' through our own model of the world but I think Freddie's pretty successful really! I'd note in passing that people like Freddie Burns focus on winning; losers focus on winners.

Personally more sad to see Owen Williams leave.

...and that's an opinion which I disagree with but I respect your view!

[Soggypitch]

Well said Strawclearer. Totally agree.

[jgriffin]

Well said Strawclearer. Totally agree.

Well said Sir.
I may note in passing that there had been rumours around Xmas that this was the deal going down.
I may also not Scott1 that since I was not present at the Fans Forum I cannot judge on whether information was given there that could be accurate or it was an agreed 'party line'. I am also not in the habit of judging people to be a liar unless it is clearly established (e.g. Paul Nuttall claims about Hillsborough).

[tigercaspian]

All this talk of being a 'true Tiger' is so vague and soft. Such a mentality is why this club has lost its winning mentality top to bottom. Freddie Burns wasn't a winner. Personally more sad to see Owen Williams leave.

Well, you certainly couldn't bottle the 'true Tiger' recipe and therefore clone further 'true Tigers'but, on the basis, that Burns has improved as a player since he joined us and, specifically this season, has indeed been one of our most consistent players, I'd give him a good shout at that title. In addition, he paid as I recall for his own kicking tutorials from Grayson to improve that part of his game - factual evidence that he wanted to improve.
I can only assume from the rest of your well thought out arguments that a 'true Tiger' to you is is someone who only ever cares about winning, regardless of the cost ? Or indeed simply wants to pick up a £450,000 pa pay-cheque at another club??

[Clowbeck]

@richardssalex "All this talk of being a 'true Tiger' is so vague and soft."

Watch Burns' try against the Dragons at 1:25...not a true tiger...really?

http://www.premiershiprugby.com/video/a ... s-round-2/

[Ian Cant]

Freddie is a top bloke. He has been a consistently good to very good player for us when we haven't been a dominant force due to injuries, poor form etc. My wife's favourite player and she loved his own selfie with a certain new French player after Saturday 's game! An honest, intelligent player. Now let us enjoy Freddie for the last few games this season. Well done Freddie, a class act in every way. We wish we had you and Fordy! Good luck at Bath except against us.