News in Brief
Tigers struggling to keep Tuqiri
Scrum.com
December 18, 2009
Lote Tuqiri's Leicester future is up in the air
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- Leicester Tigers have admitted that the Guinness Premiership salary cap may not allow them to retain the services of former Australia wing Lote Tuqiri beyond the end of the season.
Tuqiri was signed as a temporary replacement for injured fullback Geordan Murphy, allowing the club to break the £4m salary cap on a one-off basis. Tigers' head of operations Simon Cohen admitted that keeping Tuqiri would be difficult when Murphy returns to action.
"We would like to keep Lote because he is a world- class player. But he was brought in as an injury allowance under the salary cap as a replacement for Geordan Murphy for a certain period of time," Cohen told the Leicester Mercury. "If that dispensation is not available for next year, it is going to be very difficult to find the money to keep him."
- John Rudd has put pen to paper on a contact which will keep him at London Irish for the rest of the season.
The 28-year-old Rudd has made seven appearances for the Exiles since arriving on a short-term deal in October and head coach Toby Booth was only too keen to extend the player's stay at the Madejski Stadium.
"John is a strong and quick back who has taken his opportunity to show what he can add to our squad and we're pleased that he will be with us until the end of the season at least," he said.
Rudd, unsurprisingly, is delighted that he has been offered the opportunity to earn himself a long-term contract with the club.
"I'm pleased with the ways things have gone since I arrived at London Irish. It's good to be part of a squad that wants to play attractive, entertaining rugby and I'm looking forward to contributing to that going forward."
- The Stormers have been forced to cancel a proposed Super 14 training camp at Pinnacle Point due to severe water shortages in the southern Cape. The franchise will continue to prepare for the new season at their centre in Bellville.
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1. Max Verstappen ()
