Courtney Lawes is due in France on Friday to seal his Pro D2 move

Former England captain Courtney Lawes is due to travel to Brive later this week where he is expected to put the finishing touches to his move this summer from Northampton Saints.

The soon-to-be 35-year-old retired from international rugby after winning his 105th England Test cap at the recent Rugby World Cup. Lawes is out of contract with the Saints at the end of the season and has been blunt about securing the financial future of his family.

RugbyPass understands that he is due to attend Brive’s Pro D2 clash with Valence Romans at Stade Amedee-Domenech this Friday night – the same day as his birthday – where he could be unveiled as the club’s latest signing.

He accepted Brive’s offer of £30,000 (€35,000) a month over Provence’s almost £20,000 (€23,000 plus private school fees for his children), while Beziers enquired when it looked like the move had stalled.

Saints were confident that Lawes, who last year had turned his back on the chance to move to France at that time to extend his 17-year stay at Franklin’s Gardens, would stay at the club for the rest of his stellar career.

“I don’t think it is a million miles away, but there is nothing absolute. We are still hoping to can do something, but we will wait and see on that,” said Saints director of rugby Phil Dowson on a media call last week.

Lawes now looks as if he has made his decision to swap the Gallagher Premiership leaders, who are seven points clear of second-placed Harlequins, for France unless something dramatic happens between now and the weekend.

Brive have dropped down the Pro D2 promotion race after losing their last three games. They are currently ninth in the table, a point behind sixth-placed Aurillac who are in the last of the end-of-season play-off places.