Ex-England winger Jack Nowell considers options with offer on the table

La Rochelle have offered former England and Lions winger Jack Nowell a new one-year deal, with an option to stay in the Bay of Biscay for a second year when his contract ends at the end of the season.

Nowell, 33, who won the Prem and Champions Cup double in 2020 with Exeter Chiefs, played for Redruth, Plymouth Albion and Cornish Pirates before moving to France three years ago.

Capped 46 times by England and twice by the Lions on the 2017 tour to New Zealand, the Truro-born ace has scored two tries in four appearances for the Les Maritimes this season and has 19 in 71 appearances since crossing the English Channel.

His name has been circulated around clubs at home and in Japan for a potential move, but Ronan O’Gara is keen for him to stay with La Rochelle, while Midi Olympique reports that Nowell would prefer a straight two-year deal.

Nowell plans to eventually return to his native Cornwall, where he intends to settle when he hangs up his boots is set to have more talks with La Rochelle bosses in the next few weeks in a bid to strike an agreement.

O’Gara would also like former Springbok back Dillyn Leyds to stay at the club next season and has offered him the same terms as Nowell, and they are edging in the right direction towards a positive outcome.

Leyds, 34, who played for Western Province, Western Force, Perth Spirit and the Stormers, won ten Springbok caps and was a Junior World Cup winner in 2012 before he moved to La Rochelle six years ago.

A member of the squad that won back-to-back Champions Cup titles in 2022 and 2023, he has scored two tries in eight appearances this season and has played over 150 games for the club on the wing and full-back since he moved from Cape Town.