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Racing 92 set for major squad overhaul to accommodate Owen Farrell

Racing 92's players leave the field during the Investec Champions Cup match between Bath Rugby and Racing 92 at Recreation Ground on January 14, 2024 in Bath, England. (Photo by Bob Bradford - CameraSport via Getty Images)

Owen Farrell’s arrival at Racing 92 from Saracens at the end of the season is likely to result in twelve players having to leave the Top 14 club so that they can remain within the salary cap, according to Midi Olympique

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The former England captain’s move was confirmed yesterday by the Parisian club, who have signed him on a two-year deal from the end of the season.

The 32-year-old will team up with some of the biggest stars in the game currently, none more so than South Africa captain Siya Kolisi. That means the captain of the World Cup winners and the captain of the bronze medallists will both be at the same club next season.

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Henry Arundell talks England future when playing in France | RPTV

The 21-year-old Racing 92 flyer told The Big Jim Show what his reasons for playing in France are and what the future holds now that he is ineligible for England due to playing outside of the country.

Full interview

Video Spacer

Henry Arundell talks England future when playing in France | RPTV

The 21-year-old Racing 92 flyer told The Big Jim Show what his reasons for playing in France are and what the future holds now that he is ineligible for England due to playing outside of the country.

Full interview

Having such a welter of world class talent comes at a price though, and Midi Olympique (who originally revealed that Farrell was close to signing for Racing) have reported that there will be at least a dozen departures from La Defense Arena so that Racing can balance their books.

The French outlet have also reported that Racing have to pay Saracens €500k to buy the 112-cap England fly-half out of the final year of his contract. That sum will not be part of the salary cap, however, as the buyout fee is less that Farrell’s annual salary.

Racing were busy over the summer recruiting new players, with Kolisi headlining a list that included Farrell’s England teammate Henry Arundell, Fijian star Josua Tuisova and Wales’ Will Rowlands. There were also some major departures as well, with Finn Russell moving to Bath. The Englishman will come in to fill the void left by Russell, but as a result there are likely to be more high profile departures to accommodate him.

With French internationals Romain Taofifénua and Demba Bamba also reported to be moving to Paris at the end of the season, a major squad overhaul may be on the horizon.

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1 Comment
J
Jon 286 days ago

You could almost believe a club like racing would pay 2 or 3 times the price for a worse player, but no this is just a football article to match the football price tag

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O
Oh no, not him again? 2 hours ago
England internationals disagree on final play execution vs All Blacks

Okay, so we blew it big time on Saturday. So rather than repeating what most people have all ready said, what do I want to see from Borthwick going forward?


Let's keep Marcus Smith on the pitch if he's fit and playing well. I was really pleased with his goal kicking. It used to be his weakness. I feel sympathy for George Ford who hadn't kicked all match and then had a kick to win the game. You hear pundits and commentators commend kickers who have come off the bench and pulled that off. Its not easy. If Steve B continues to substitute players with no clear reason then he is going to get criticised.


On paper I thought England would beat NZ if they played to their potential and didn't show NZ too much respect. Okay, the off the ball tackles certainly stopped England scoring tries, but I would have liked to see more smashing over gainlines and less kicking for position. Yes, I also know it's the Springbok endorsed world cup double winning formula but the Kiwi defence isn't the Bok defence, is it. If you have the power to put Smith on the front foot then why muzzle him? I guess what I'm saying is back, yourself. Why give the momentum to a team like NZ? Why feed the beast? Don't give the ball to NZ. Well d'uh.


Our scrum is a long term weakness. If you are going to play Itoje then he needs an ogre next door and a decent front row. Where is our third world class lock? Where are are realible front row bench replacements? The England scrum has been flakey for a while now. It blows hot and cold. Our front five bench is not world class.


On the positive side I love our starting backrow right now. I'd like to see them stick together through to the next world cup.


Anyway, there is always another Saturday.

7 Go to comments
C
CO 2 hours ago
Scott Robertson responds to criticism over All Blacks' handling errors

Robertson is more a manager of coaches than a coach so it comes down to intent of outcomes at a high level. I like his intent, I like the fact his Allblacks are really driving the outcomes however as he's pointed out the high error rates are not test level and their control of the game is driving both wins and losses. England didn't have to play a lot of rugby, they made far fewer mistakes and were extremely unlucky not to win.


In fact the English team were very early in their season and should've been comfortably beaten by an Allblacks team that had played multiple tests together.


Razor has himself recognised that to be the best they'll have to sort out the crisis levels of mistakes that have really increased since the first two tests against England.


Early tackles were a classic example of hyper enthusiasm to not give an inch, that passion that Razor has achieved is going to be formidable once the unforced errors are eliminated.


That's his secret, he's already rebuilt the passion and that's the most important aspect, its inevitable that he'll now eradicate the unforced errors. When that happens a fellow tier one nation is going to get thrashed. I don't think it will be until 2025 though.


The Allblacks will lose both tests against Ireland and France if they play high error rates rugby like they did against England.


To get the unforced errors under control he's going to be needing to handover the number eight role to Sititi and reset expectations of what loose forwards do. Establish a clear distinction with a large, swarthy lineout jumper at six that is a feared runner and dominant tackler and a turnover specialist at seven that is abrasive in contact. He'll then need to build depth behind the three starters and ruthlessly select for that group to be peaking in 2027 in hit Australian conditions on firm, dry grounds.


It's going to help him that Savea is shifting to the worst super rugby franchise where he's going to struggle behind a beaten pack every week.


The under performing loose forward trio is the key driver of the high error rates and unacceptable turn overs due to awol link work. Sititi is looking like he's superman compared to his openside and eight.


At this late stage in the season they shouldn't be operating with just the one outstanding loose forward out of four selected for the English test. That's an abject failure but I think Robertson's sacrificing link quality on purpose to build passion amongst the junior Allblacks as they see the reverential treatment the old warhorses are receiving for their long term hard graft.


It's unfortunately losing test matches and making what should be comfortable wins into nail biters but it's early in the world cup cycle so perhaps it's a sacrifice worth making.


However if this was F1 then Sam Cane would be Riccardo and Ardie would be heading into Perez territory so the loose forwards desperately need revitalisation through a rebuild over the next season to complement the formidable tight five.

28 Go to comments
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