At 21, Henry Arundell is one of the jewels of the England selection. Fast, powerful and very precocious, the full-back demonstrated the extent of his potential during the last Rugby World Cup, notably scoring a quintuple against Chile. While the XV de la Rose challenges the Blues, Saturday March 16 in Décines-Charpieu (Rhône), on the final day of the Six Nations Tournament, it is quite natural that Henry Arundell will play his next match in France. But no “crunch” on the program for him: his schedule indicates a meeting in Castres (Tarn), the following weekend, with his Racing 92 team.
The rear twirler has not lost all its qualities in a few months. But Henry Arundell comes up against a rule put in place by the English Rugby Federation (RFU) in 2011: to claim to wear the white jersey of the XV de la Rose, a player must play year-round in the country of Her Majesty.
If the RFU has erected this wall between its championship and the rest of the world, it is to prevent the flight of crampons towards more lucrative fields. Starting with France, where the “banned” from the English selection are more and more numerous: from the third row Jack Willis in Toulouse, to the center Joe Marchant at the Stade français, through the second row David Ribbans in Toulon.
“Joining France is an opportunity to live a new experience, to see another way of training. But it would be a lie to say that money doesn’t also play a role in this kind of decision.”, bluntly admits winger Jack Nowell (30), who has been playing in La Rochelle since the start of the season after splitting the first years of his career between the Exeter club and the English selection (46 caps). Jack Nowell, who extended his lease in the Maritimes until 2027, has no illusions: “My international career is probably over. I will be 34 years old at the end of my contract and there are a lot of young people arriving. »
English rugby in crisis, but a XV de la Rose in good shape
Agreeing to deprive itself of elements likely to strengthen its ranks is the choice made by the English national team – and many other leading nations in world rugby – to “encourage” its stars and nuggets not to cross the Channel. And keep the level of the local championship afloat. “They want to protect it by making sure the best players stay in the country. It’s in their interest to do that, but then it’s up to the players to weigh the pros and cons.”observe at World the second line of the Blues Thibaud Flament, whose training took place, in part, across the Channel.
You have 59.55% of this article left to read. The rest is reserved for subscribers.