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La Rochelle eyeing two rising stars of French rugby - report

Leo Barre of France salutes the supporters following the Guinness Six Nations 2024 match between France and England at Groupama Stadium on March 16, 2024 in Decines near Lyon, France.(Photo by Jean Catuffe/Getty Images)

La Rochelle are lining up a potential double swoop for two rising stars of French rugby, Nolann le Garrec and Leo Barre, in the summer of 2025, according to French outlet l’Equipe.

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Le Garrec, regarded as Antoine Dupont’s understudy for France, is viewed as a potential successor to Tawera Kerr-Barlow on the Atlantic coast, but his current club, Racing 92, are not keen on letting the 22-year-old leave.

“We want to keep him, it’s our priority,” Racing 92 president Jacky Lorenzetti said, as reported by l’Equipe.

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“We are his training club, we have done everything to help him flourish. But he must want to stay.”

The report also said that La Rochelle will face competition from Racing 92’s Parisian rivals Stade Francais for the scrum-half’s signature.

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Stade Francais will also be focussing on retaining the services of versatile back Barre at the end of next season, with his contract running out in June 2025.

La Rochelle boss Ronan O’Gara is also eyeing 21-year-old France international as another successor to an ageing squad member, Brice Dulin.

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The two-time Investec Champions Cup winners fell off their perch this past season, crashing out of Europe in the quarter-finals and losing to Toulouse in the semi-finals of the Top 14. They will be looking to rebuild their squad to return to the top of the European game.

Stade Francais will also want to build on a promising season, where they finished second in the Top 14, and will not want to let one of the rising stars of French rugby in Barre leave at the end of his contract.

Barre will be looking to add to his two international caps this summer after being named in Fabien Galthie’s France squad that will take on Argentina. Le Garrec, meanwhile, was not selected for the tour after undergoing a shoulder operation.

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J
JW 4 hours ago
Why NZR's Ineos settlement may be the most important victory they'll enjoy this year

It really all depends of how much overseas players would be paid (by NZR) to play for the All Blacks. I’ve not heard a peep on this front from any author suggesting it’s a good idea.


If it’s nothing (a player gets his weekly paycheck from the club and thats it (which we know is definitely not the case in Ireland and France, or SA even I think?), then maybe it would retain more SR level players given that they’ll be getting the “AB” component (which is about where things stand, Burke for instance would have had to had his Sader contract upgraded to an AB one (think above Pero levels) to be on similar money.


I’d having to imagine if a player is getting paid to do nothing over the international windows though, they are going to want to get paid extra for appear for the ABs, so in this situation, it’s hard to see many players being retained, yes.


I’m pretty sure they flew to Japan and met in person.


I’ve heard/had these discussions numerous times. I don’t think theres anyway to judge the interest that would be retain in SR. For one, it might be a more entertaining league as a result, as the JRLO is compared to Europe, despite it obviously being a lesser standard.


If SRP is of a lesser standard and now able to use Japanese and American players to bolster teams, perhaps those markets more than make up for the downturn in NZ and Aus? Perhaps it gives NZR flexibility to create a more fit for purpose interdomestic competition, and interest actually increases? All you might need is a proper pathway from school to pro?


Razor asked NZR to keep an open mind. Did NZR answer any of these questions to themself?

25 Go to comments
J
JW 6 hours ago
Kyren Taumoefolau All Blacks stance splits opinions on eligibility

Yeah of course it can be, it manages a good commerical outcome when 100 million people are following it. I’m saying rugby is no where near even remotely close to getting the payoff you’re talking about, never mind the distinct lack of anyway to implement it.


So you’re going for the dirty approach. I’m not surprised, it’s the only way to easily implement it right now. I wouldn’t see the benefit to doing that myself. A draft, if purely feasible in it’s own right, doesn’t need to provide commercial benefit at all (if it works, that’s all it needs to do, as it no doubt did back in america’s heyday). But without the advantageous backing of sponsors and interest levels, if you pick the wrong method to implement it, like a dirty approach, you do potential harm to it’s acceptance.


The aspect’s of the approach you chose that I don’t like, is that the franchises are the ones spending the money of the U20’s only for there opposition to get first dibs. Personally, I would much prefer an investment into a proper pathway (which I can’t really see SR U20s being at all in anycase). I’m not exactly sure how the draft works in america, but I’m pretty sure it’s something like ‘anyone whishing to be pro has to sign for the draft’, and results in maybe 10 or 20% of those being drafted. The rest (that accumulative 80/90% year on year) do go back into club, pronvincial, or whatever they have there, and remain scouted and options to bring in on immediate notice for cover etc. You yes, you draw on everybody, but what is generating your interest in the drafties in the first plaec?


This is your missing peace. If some come through school and into the acadamies, which would be most, you’ve currently got three years of not seeing those players after they leave school. Those that miss and come in through club, maybe the second year theyre in the draft or whatever, aged 20/21, you’re going to have no clue how they’ve been playing. NPC is a high level, so any that are good enough to play that would already be drafted, but some late bloomers you might see come in NPC but then Sky’s not going to broadcast that anymore. So what’s generating this massive interest you’re talking about, and most importantly, how does it tie in with the other 7 clubs that will be drafting (and providing) players outside of NZ?


Is the next step to pump tens of millions into SRP U20s? That would be a good start for investment in the youth (to get onto international levels of pathway development) in the first place but are fans going to be interested to the same level as what happens in america? Baseball, as mentioned, has the minor leagues, if we use that model it hasn’t to be broad over the whole pacific, because you’re not having one draft right, they all have to play against each other. So here they get drafted young and sent out into a lower level thats more expansive that SR, is there interest in that? There would be for large parts, but how financially viable would it be. Twiggy tried to get a league started and NPC clubs joined. BOP and Taranaki want SR representation, do we have a mix of the biggest clubs and provinces/states make a couple of divisions? I think that is far more likely to fan interest and commerical capabilities than an U20 of the SR teams. Or ofc Uni fits a lot of options. I’ve not really read anything that has tried to nut out the feasability of a draft, it can certainly work if this spitballing is anything to go by, but I think first theres got to be a need for it far above just being a drafting level.

36 Go to comments
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