Australia
Cooper's Toulon issue not our problem: ARU
July 23, 2015
Quade Cooper shakes hands with Toulon club owner Mourad Boudjellal in a Toulon jersey, Toulon, Top 14, April 24, 2015
Quade Cooper: the picture that has spawned a thousand words © RCT
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Australian Rugby Union officials have attempted to distance themselves from the emerging stoush between Quade Cooper and Mourad Boudjellal after the enraged Toulon owner threatened to sue for "millions of euros" if the playmaker backflips on his big-money deal to join the French Top 14heavyweights.

Cooper, who posed for a photo in a Toulon jersey with Boudjellal earlier this year, was set to join Toulon after the Rugby World Cup, but reports this week indicate Australia and former Queensland five-eighth has opted to stay in the country on a four-year deal with the aim of leading the Australian Sevens team's charge to the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

Boudjellal launched a dramatic tirade on French radio in which he accused the ARU of playing "dirty" for continuing to negotiate with Cooper after he had already committed to Toulon.

"They are speaking to a player who they know has signed," Boudjellal told Sud Radio. "So there is collusion there and I might sue the Australian federation to ensure our rights are respected."

ARU general manager Rob Clarke said on Thursday that the board had no intention of entering the argument.

"We're not planning on responding," Clarke said. "It really isn't our issue, it's Quade's issue and his management's issue, and it's really in his court to sort that out. We've had ongoing discussions with Quade, but where that ends up is very much in his hands. Toulon have made a pretty definitive statement and now it's really up to Quade and his management to sort it out the best way they see fit."

Cooper's interests are managed by Khoder Nasser, who is no stranger to Boudjellal after he helped deliver one of Toulon's biggest signings, Sonny Bill Williams. The blockbusting All Blacks centre signed with Toulon in 2008 after walking out on NRL club Canterbury while still under contract and midway through the Australian rugby league season.

The Bulldogs successfully gained a court injunction to prevent Williams from playing with Toulon before the matter was eventually sorted when the New Zealander and Canterbury agreed on a $Aus750,000 cash settlement, granting his release to play for the Top 14 club.

It's believed that Cooper will have to pay a six-figure release fee from his own pocket given the ARU's previous reticence towards players who renege on deals. But Boudjellal is adamant that Cooper had already signed a contract, saying he will be willing to pursue Australia's governing body if the player does not honour the deal.

"If Cooper doesn't come, the compensation will be in millions of euros," he said. "He was our first choice. The damage to our image is significant. "He took a photo with us, we centred our season ticket campaign around him, his jersey is on sale. What's more, we passed on other fly-halves to get him."

Cooper, who is currently in Argentina with the Wallabies, will reportedly devote all of next year to the Australian Sevens program before returning to Super Rugby in 2017.

© AAP

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