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Luke Burgess confirms Toulouse exit
March 22, 2013
Toulouse's Luke Burgess is shackled by the Perpignan defence, Toulouse, Perpignan, Top 14, Stade Ernest-Wallon , Toulouse, France, February 15, 2013
Luke Burgess is happy to escape the shackles of French club rugby © Getty Images
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Luke Burgess has confirmed he will quit French rugby giants Toulouse at the end of the season to return to Australia to sign with a Super Rugby outfit. Melbourne Rebels are hot favourites to secure the Wallabies half-back's signature, after the departure of Nick Phipps to join New South Wales Waratahs next season.

"I am going to leave, I have another opportunity," Burgess said on Thursday. "It's hard to work in another language, but that's not an excuse. It's a challenge that I appreciate."

Burgess, 29, has another year on his deal with Toulouse after joining the European rugby powerhouse from the Waratahs after the 2011 IRB Rugby World Cup, but he pointed to the differences between French club rugby and the career he enjoyed in Super Rugby. "The rucks are different, the refereeing is different, that's true, but I have learned a lot playing in Europe," he said.

Phipps agreed a two-year deal with the Waratahs in early March to return home to Sydney.

Burgess spent five seasons at the Waratahs between 2007 and 2011, having joined from the Brumbies.

© AAP

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