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Recent Italy recruit Paolo Odogwu has named Benetton as his new club following the conclusion of his short-term deal with Stade Francais. The centre/winger headed to France following last October’s collapse of Gallagher Premiership club Wasps and he made 12 appearances for the Parisians.
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However, following their play-off elimination by Racing 92 earlier this month, Odogwu was named as one of the 13 players who would be leaving and it has now been confirmed by Benetton that he will join them for their 2023/24 URC/Challenge Cup campaign and possibly longer.
It was May when Odogwu, who spent the entire 2021 Guinness Six Nations in camp with England without getting a debut Test cap, was named by Kieran Crowley in the Italy squad to prepare for the upcoming Rugby World Cup.
The 26-year-old Coventry-born wing, who is of Nigerian and Italian descent, had been capped by England at age-grade level but now very much wants to represent Italy
His switch to Benetton will surely bolster his selection chances in a club line-up that includes fellow ex-Wasps players in the guise of Jacob Umaga, Marcus Watson, Matteo Minozzi and Malakai Fekitoa.
Paolo Odogwu has gone from the highs of an England squad call-up to lows of redundancy with Wasps, but come out the other side with Stade Francais and a spot in the wider Italian national squad.
It's been some ride…@RugbyTimes https://t.co/UrqzUohE8l
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) June 1, 2023
A statement read: “Benetton are happy to announce the signing of Paolo Odogwu until June 30, 2024, with an option for another season. He is a utility back capable of playing both centre and wing positions.
“It’s a profile that guarantees disruptive physicality in the open field, as well as consistent speed and excellent technical qualities. Odogwu is one of the most interesting talents on an international level and already has a wealth of experience at club level.
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“Called up in recent weeks to be part of the Italian group in view of the 2023 World Cup which will start in September in France, Odogwu started playing rugby at schools level, spending his youth years at Leicester Tigers before signing for Sale Sharks following his release in the summer of 2016. In 2019 he signed for Wasps.”
Odogwu said: “The main reason that prompted me to join Benetton is the opportunity to test myself in a new environment and in a new league with a team that is growing very well.
“Also, it’s really exciting to have the chance to reunite with some old friends like Umaga, Watson, Minozzi and Fekitoa. After reaching the semi-finals of the Challenge Cup last season, the standard is set high.
“We are a team built to go beyond the regular season in both competitions. Also, at this point in my career, it’s very important for me to have the chance to play in Treviso and potentially represent my country at the same time.
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“After what happened with Wasps, I can’t wait to settle down and start a new season without the fear that something like this could happen again.”
Antonio Pavanello, the Benetton general manager, added: “The talks with Paolo had been going on for some time and when the opportunity presented itself, together with FIR which supported the player’s involvement for the purpose of his participation in international activity, we tried to seize it by finding an agreement for the next seasons.
“Odogwu is a flexible player capable of covering both the role of centre and wing, especially in the latter. It was our desire to insert an Italian profile capable of bringing greater explosiveness and physicality.
“We can therefore say that with the addition of Paolo’s characteristics, in the roles in question, we have a range of profiles with different qualities that during the season will allow us to implement various solutions and satisfy different needs.”
Comments on RugbyPass
“While Sotutu should start at No.8 for the All Blacks against England, but it’s only in that arena that he can prove just how good he really is.” And that my friends is where simply hasnt shone despite multiple opportunities. Even in this performance you can see what did him in in the test arena..he almost always still runs at the opposition almost ramrod upright making him easier to stop than it should be.
1 Go to commentsShould have been 0-0 and a message from SR CEO to both teams - “don’t worry about turning up next year”.
3 Go to commentsGreat work Owen Franks. A great of this team, scoring his first try for the Crusaders since 2010.He was beaming, justifiably. A fine win, he and the rest did the job up front.
1 Go to commentsDanny Care. Lang in die tand.
1 Go to commentsBig empty stadium does nothing for atmosphere but munster are playing well with solid performance
1 Go to commentsYes, Fiji can win the World Cup! With that belief plus their christian faith🙏 and hard work it is achievable. Great article. Ian Duncan Fiji resident 1981-84
2 Go to commentsInteresting comments about Touch. England’s hosting the Touch World Cup this year and the numbers have exploded since their last World Cup in 2019, something like 70% more teams and 40 nations taking part. And England Touch have made a big thing about how many universities are in their BUCS University Touch Championship as well as Sport England membership. Can only see this growing even more domestically as more people become aware of it
10 Go to comments“Cortez Ratima is light years ahead of anyone on current form, while TJ Perenara has also skyrocketed into contention following the unfortunate injury to the talented Cam Roigard.” At last some sanity. Hitherto so many pundits have been wittering on about Finlay Christie to the point one wondered if they were observing a FC in a parallel universe where the FC they saw wasnt just the mediocre Shayne Philpott project of Fosters hapless AB reign in the real world. Ratima, Perenara and Fakatava are the ONLY logical 9s for Razor now Roigard is crocked.
3 Go to commentsThis game was just as painful as the Hurricanes game. It was real fork-in-the-eye stuff.
3 Go to commentsNow if they could just fire the Crusaders ground PA guy who likes to play his dance music and just loves the sound of his own voice the entire game, even when play is going on. And I thought their brass band thing of a few years ago was bad.
5 Go to commentsUnfortunately when you lose by far the two form players this season in Roigard and Aumua, you're left replacing two game changing Tanks with a couple of pea-shooters. Which is also about the speed of TJs pass.
4 Go to commentsBit rich coming from the guy with zero loyalty to anyone or any team, including happily taking a players place in a league world cup squad because well, SBW wanted to play in it and thus an already named player got told he was no longer going. And airing stuff like this, which may or may not be true, doesn't exactly say you're a stand up guy either SBW. Just looking to keep his name in lights as usual.
38 Go to commentsTamati Tua. …the Taniwha NPC midfielder. Ollie Sapsford, Hawkes Bay NPC midfielder…doing well
4 Go to commentsFiji deserve to be in the rugby championship, fans love seeing the Fijian national team play, the Fijian Drua is a wonderful idea but the players can still be stolen to play for NZ and AUS…
2 Go to commentsThe first concern for this afternoon are wheather forecast…
1 Go to commentsWhy cant I watch Rugby games please?
1 Go to commentsBeautiful shot from Finau, end of story. Gutted for Shaun Stevenson though.
4 Go to commentsThe Chiefs definitely didn’t win ugly. They had the superior scrum, a dominant lineout, and their defence was excellent once the Waratahs scored their two tries (thanks to some lucky refereeing calls mind you). They put pressure on the Waratahs lineout throughout the game, and the mind boggles as to why the referee did not award a yellow card or a penalty try against the Waratahs for repeated scrum infringements on their own try line before Narawa’s first try. And the Chiefs were slick with their passing and running angles on attack. It was a dominant performance all round, even with many questionable refereeing decisions.
1 Go to commentsWasnt late. Ref 2 assistants andTMO all saw it so who are you to say it was?
4 Go to commentsAre the Brumbies playing the Blues twice in a row?
4 Go to comments