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Rival French club confirm 'contact' in signing Kolbe from Toulouse
World Cup-winning Springboks winger Cheslin Kolbe could have played his last match for Toulouse as reports in France claim Top 14 rivals Toulon have made contact about signing the soon-to-be 28-year-old before the end of this year – even though he is under contract with the French champions until the end of the 2022/23 season.
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The recent Top 14/Champions Cup double winner is currently on international duty with South Africa and he isn’t due back in France until December as the Springboks fly out to Australia on Thursday to complete the Rugby Championship campaign before moving on to play in Europe in November where they will face Wales, Scotland and England on successive weekends.
Kolbe finished up this month’s Test series versus the touring Lions in Cape Town as a third Test try-scorer despite the controversy surrounding his second Test yellow card which critics believed should have been red after he collided with the aerial Conor Murray.
Media reports in recent days suggested Toulon were interested in securing the services of Kolbe when his 2021 international commitments were over and Bernard Lemaitre, the president of the club, has now confirmed they are very much interested in bringing in the finisher who first arrived in France in 2017 and has since gone on to win two Top 14 titles and a European trophy.
French newspaper L’Equipe have reported: “While several media have mentioned the transfer of Cheslin Kolbe from Toulouse to Toulon, Bernard Lemaitre has confirmed his interest in the South African winger on Wednesday.
“Contacts have been established and Cheslin Kolbe could leave Toulouse to join the ranks of Toulon after the Rugby Championship.” Lemaitre added: “It may be that Toulouse and the RCT find an agreement, but we are not there yet. I cannot comment. I see the information passing like you. It seems premature to me. There are still too many shadows.”
Rassie Erasmus is being egged on by a former Springboks coachhttps://t.co/l5sSQ0E5AK
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) August 24, 2021
It is reported that this transfer would be targeted to happen midway through the 2021/22 season in France and not when Kolbe’s current deal with Toulouse runs out nearly two years from now. Toulon start their Top 14 campaign with a September 4 home game versus Montpellier while Toulouse will travel the following day to take on La Rochelle, the team they defeated in the 2020/21 league and European finals.
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The All Blacks will need to focus on three key areas if they are to defeat the Springboks in the Rugby Championship over the coming weeks. #AllBlacks #Springboks #RugbyChampionship https://t.co/apyMm1z91G
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) August 25, 2021
Comments on RugbyPass
Except for the injured Zach Gallagher this would be Saders best forward pack for the season. Blackadder needs to stay at 7, for all of Christies tackling he is not dominant and offers very little else. McNicholfullback is maybe a good option, Fihaki not really upto it, there was a reason Burke played there last year. Maybe Havilli to 2nd five McLeod to wing. Need a strong winger on 1 side to compliment Reece
1 Go to commentsTo me TJ is clearly the best 9 in the competition right now but he's also a proven player off the bench, there's few playmaking players who can come off the bench as calm and settled as he is, Beauden can, TJ can and I doubt any of the scrumhalves in contention can, if they want to experiment with new 9s I want him on the bench ready to step in if they crumble under the pressure. The Boks put their best front row on the bench, I'd like to see us take a similar approach, the Hurricanes have been doing similar things with players like Kirifi.
33 Go to commentsROG has better chance to win a WC if he starts training and make himself eligible as a player. He won’t make the Ireland squad but I reckon he may get close with Namibia (needs to improve his Afrikaans) or Portugal. Both sides had 1000:1 odds to win the RWC in 2023 which is an improvement on ROG’s odds of winning a RWC as a coach. Unlike Top 14 teams, national teams can’t go shopping and buy the best players - you work with the available talent pool and turn them into world beaters.
2 Go to commentsthat backline nope that backline is terrible why would you have sevu Reece when he’s not even top 5 wingers in the comp why have Blackadder when there’s better players no Scott barret isn’t an automatic the guy is more of a liability than anything why have him there when you have samipeni who’s far far better
33 Go to commentsAh, good to find you Nick. Agree with everything about Cale. So much to like about his game
49 Go to commentsNot too bad. Questions at 6, lock and HB for me. The ABs will be a lot stronger once Jordan and Roigard return. Also, work needs to be made to secure Frizzell back for next season and maybe also Mo’unga; they’re just wasting time playing in japan
33 Go to commentsOn the title, i wonder for many of those people it is a case something like a belief in working smarter, not harder?
1 Go to commentsForget Sotutu. One of those whose top level is Super Rugby. Id take a punt on Wallace Sititi Finau ahead of Glass body Blackadder.
33 Go to commentsI’m a pensioner so I've been around a bit. My opinion of SBW is he is an elite athlete and a great New Zealander and roll model. He has been to the top and knows what he's talking about. To all the negative comments regarding SBW the typical New Zealand way, cut that tall poppy down.
17 Go to commentsI'm not listening to a guy moralise over others when this is the guy who walked out mid season on Canterbury RLFC when he had a contract with them, what a hypocrite. Those praising him are a joke.
17 Go to commentsI’d put Finau at 6 instead of Blackadder but that’s the only change I’d make. Can’t wait to see who Razor picks.
33 Go to commentsTamati Williams, Codie Taylor, and Same Cane? Not sure about Hoskins Sotutu at test level. Wasn’t that impressive last season. Need a balance between experience and talent/youth.
33 Go to commentsInteresting insight. Fantastic athlete, and a genuine human being.
17 Go to commentsThey played at night in Suva last weekend and it’s an afternoon game forecast for 19 degrees in Canberra this weekend. Heat change is a non issue.
1 Go to commentsWishing Rosie a speedy recovery
1 Go to commentsObscene that SA haven’t been knocking
1 Go to commentsChances of Blackadder being injured seem too high to give him serious consideration. ABs loosie combination finally looked good with 2 committed to tackling and clearing rucks in the centre and Ardie roaming. Hoskins/Ardie together would force one of them into where they don’t excel and don’t get to use their talent, or require a change in tactics. If we continue to evolve last years systems I would take Papali’i and Finau at 6 and 7 (conceding that Blackadder will be injured) and Ardie at 8.
33 Go to commentsArdie’s preferred position 7? Where do they get these writers from? I've no idea where he's playing in Japan, but the previous two seasons he wore the 7 jersey exactly twice.
17 Go to commentsNot good to hear Ulster described as “financially troubled”. Did not think it was getting to that level. I would hope the Irish system of spreading players of talent away from Leinster would kick in now. Better to have a Leinster fringe player with Ulster or Connacht, then getting only a few games a season in Dublin. 10, for example, would seem to be a case for spreading the talent. I would not be at all adverse to a SA man coming in as head coach/DR. Ludeke is worth trying. Certainly got a long and impressive coaching career at this level…..149 games in SR, then Japan, 30 years experience. And Ulster’s ledger of successful SA coaches and players is on the positive side. Is talk of Ruan Pienaar interested in coming back as a coach…..could be a good combination with Ludeke. And Pienaar and family would have no settling in to do, one would judge. He loved life in Ulster when there, by all reports.
1 Go to commentsSome thoughts to consider here, Sam. Thanks
2 Go to comments