Northern Edition

Select Edition

Northern Northern
Southern Southern
Global Global
New Zealand New Zealand
France France

Itoje wants year away from Saracens before career ends

(Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images)

Maro Itoje has pledged his commitment to Saracens for their upcoming season in the Championship, admitting there are currently no plans in the pipeline for a loan move elsewhere so that he can have a higher level of club league rugby leading into 2021 Lions tour. However, he did admit he would like to eventually leave the club before his career ends to experience the club scene outside England.   

ADVERTISEMENT

A star on the 2017 Lions trip to New Zealand, England talisman Itoje has been the subject of much speculation that he could pitch up somewhere other than Saracens in the 2020/21 season on a short-term deal. An approach from Racing 92 to head to France for the season was reportedly blocked by Premiership clubs who insisted Eddie Jones must only select England-based players for his Test team. 

That was followed by a link to South Africa, the speculation there suggesting Saracens would leave the second row to join one of their Super Rugby franchises after he completed the 2021 Six Nations campaign with England.      

Video Spacer

The Rugby Pod reacts to Owen Farrell’s recent red-carded tackle which rules him out of Saracens’ assignment at Leinster

Video Spacer

The Rugby Pod reacts to Owen Farrell’s recent red-carded tackle which rules him out of Saracens’ assignment at Leinster

Itoje, though, has reaffirmed he is ready to stick with his Championship-bound club. “No, nothing is in place at the moment,” he said ahead of Saturday’s Champions Cup quarter-final at Leinster. “My focus is I have no direct plans of going somewhere at this point in time. I have nothing really to report.”

Relegated to the second-tier due to repeated salary cap breaches, Saracens will not be allowed to play in next season’s Champions Cup even if they get past Leinster and go on to win two more knockout stage games to successfully defend the title they won in Newcastle in 2019.

 

Itoje’s admission that he is sticking by Saracens in their Championship year was accompanied, however, by the soon to be 26-year-old forward admitting he will eventually ideally want a year away somewhere from Saracens before the end of his career. 

“Definitely. At some stage in my life, I would love to play abroad. I have had a great life and am very privileged to play the sport that I love and experience the things that I experience. 

ADVERTISEMENT

“But experiencing a different culture, experiencing a different style, just a different vibe, I have more or less lived in north-west London for the majority of my life and it’s a lovely place to live. I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else in England but at the same time it will be nice and it will be great to experience something further down the line at some point. 

“Do they play rugby in Barbados? I might play there,” he jested when asked which country he might like to go to. “I’m fairly open to where the future holds. I don’t really want to pigeon myself into a certain region or a place… but when the time is right I would love to spend at least a season somewhere.”

 

ADVERTISEMENT

LIVE

{{item.title}}

Trending on RugbyPass

Comments

0 Comments
Be the first to comment...

Join free and tell us what you really think!

Sign up for free
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest Features

Comments on RugbyPass

R
RedWarriors 3 hours ago
Antoine Dupont undergoes surgery on injured knee ahead of long absence

Rugby incident, happens scores of times in a game. Dupont wasn’t even hit with much force, Beirne just clears him and force is added from behind from Furlong.

We can’t have special treatment for France just because their star is the one who gets unlucky.

There is already a lack of clarity around actual Written decisions and how they differ from bans.

For example, Mauvaka the official written decision states Mauvaka to have made a ‘reckless’, ‘deliberate’, shot ‘to the head’ of a ‘player in a vulnerable position’ on the ground. That’s a high level entry ban of 10 weeks. However, the press release did not show ‘reckless’ or ‘vulnerable player’ ticked alloweing Mauvaka to enter at the 6 match mid range.

Similarly Ntamack’s written report showed that it was a ‘reckless’, ‘head shot’ with ‘injury’. The injury was a fully displaced nose bone and Ntamack apologizes for the injury in the written report. This should give Ntamack an entry level of 6 weeks but in the Press Release ‘Injured’ is unticked meaning Ntamack gets away with a 4 week entry ban. This is not counting the fact that the world knows he deliberately injured Thomas.

No. France have been abusing the system for years, recently spreading disinformation about the Ringrose ban in order to undermine confidence in the process.

Giving France even more special treatment is not the answer.

5 Go to comments
LONG READ
LONG READ Steve Meehan: 'If you start winning, it’s amazing what effect it has on all fans.' Steve Meehan: 'If you start winning, it’s amazing what effect it has on all fans.'
Search