CINDERFORD'S player of the year Ben West is leaving the club, having been snapped up by Championship outfit London Welsh.

West is one of eight new signings announced by Welsh, who were relegated from the Premiership last term.

Gloucester had been monitoring West's progress and wanted him to bulk up. Now, they've been beaten to the punch by the Exiles.

The 6ft 6in lock will certainly be hard to replace at Dockham Road, where he's been the cornerstone of the pack for two years.

When Cinderford announced their 13 summer signings in August 2011, the former Newbury player was at the back of the queue, dubbed 'one for the future'.

Most of the other new recruits were either head-hunted from the top academies or the Championship – while West turned up out of the blue, contacting Cinderford and asking if he could try out, after a season of heavy defeats in National Two South with whipping boys Newbury.

Once pre-season training got underway it didn't take long for a few people to change their opinions about the 20-year-old marketing man from Marlborough.

He soon leapt above Gloucester's Dave Markham in the pecking order to establish himself as Cinderford's find of the season.

For the full story, read The Forester.