The Christian Wade verdict on Saracens' Owen Farrell joining Racing
Christian Wade has described the reaction at Racing 92 following the confirmation that former England skipper Owen Farrell is to join them on a two-year deal.
The 32-year-old was named on Monday as a new signing for the 2024/25 season, a move that will see the long-time Saracens talisman link up with director of rugby Stuart Lancaster, his England coach from 2012-2015.
It was earlier this month when it was first revealed that the Parisians were said to be “very close” to completing a deal for Farrell after he decided following England’s bronze medal finish at the recent Rugby World Cup that he would be taking a sabbatical from Test rugby for the 2024 Guinness Six Nations.
That selection unavailability with England will now extend through to 2026 after Farrell opted to give life in the Top 14 a rattle with Racing rather than agree to extend his contract at Saracens.
It is quite the coup for Racing to secure the services of Farrell and Wade – who linked up with the Parisians in the summer of 2022 after his post-Wasps stint in the NFL at the Buffalo Bills came to an end – has now given his take on the appetising prospect of having the recent England skipper as his club teammate in France.
Le Racing 92 officialise la signature d’Owen FARRELL au sein de son équipe professionnelle masculine.
le communiqué de presse : https://t.co/3Ap6hAXadr pic.twitter.com/UJXsarhk1R
— Racing 92 (@racing92) January 22, 2024
Speaking on behalf of InstantCasino.com after the news broke about the signing of Farrell, Wade said: “The place is buzzing. Owen is one of the best. I have known him for a long time since we were both capped by Stuart Lancaster.
“We have had some great fly-halves in the past at Racing like Dan Carter, Johnny Sexton and Finn Russell. Now it’s Owen and it’s great news.
“Stuart gave me my opportunity with England and took me on the tour to South Africa (in 2012). Owen was on that tour as well and we got to know each other then. It will be brilliant to have him in the building!
“There were quite a few of us who were called up by Stuart who knew us when he oversaw the age-group sides. Stuart changed England for the better when he took over and he was starting from scratch pretty much.”
Having just qualified for an early April Investec Champions Cup round of 16 tie away to Toulouse, Racing ironically return to Top 14 fare this Sunday evening at Toulouse and Wade is predicting that Farrell will like what he sees from the Parisians in the coming months before he joins them across the Channel.
“We are doing pretty well as a team; we are top of the Top 14 table,” continued Wade. “We have had quite a few new players and a whole new management team with Stuart coming in from Leinster.
“We are playing a different style of rugby. There is a bit more structure to it. However, there has been a huge improvement in the time that we have been together even though we have had so many changes.
“I’m enjoying it. Owen will too. Everyone is so welcoming. We are looking forward to what the rest of the season will bring. Our whole mindset is on starting to win championships.
“Stuart Lancaster is on a different level – the coaching is incredible and Owen is in for a treat. Stuart called me before he took the job at Racing just to get a feel for what it was like. In 2015, he was already a good coach and leader but now he is on a different level having helped to turn Leinster into the formidable force they are now.
“Before he went to Leinster he went round the world looking at how other sports worked and were run, including the NFL. He has picked up a load of leadership qualities to those he already had.
“I thought he was great the way he managed us with England. I was only 21 and very young. Now I am older and wiser and appreciate through my own experiences the things he has done and where he is now in his career. He is on a very different level from the past. I’m blessed and privileged to be able to work with him again.
“The coaching team is incredible and Owen is in for a treat. Frederic Michalak is our backs coach, Dimitri Szarzewski the forwards coach – both were French internationals. Ex-All Black Joe Rokocoko is the assistant backs coach and skills coach, and Yannick Nyanga is the assistant forwards coach.
“We have a phenomenal coaching staff now and Owen will love being involved with them. Racing 92 have the best coaching staff I have ever worked with.
“For me, it is the best full coaching staff I have ever been involved in. They have such experience and all have played at the highest level. To have as my backs coach someone who I watched growing up and was my hero, it doesn’t get much better than that.”
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