Successful French Top 14 rugby club Toulon hasn’t done itself any favours in recent weeks as the Quade Cooper saga continues to draw on.
International players flock to the French competition for the great financial benefits and the easy French lifestyle. Toulon is attractive also for its amazing roster of players and continued success.
However, recent times have shown up the dark and arrogant side of Toulon. It’s not the glamorous club that Drew Mitchell and Matt Giteau know and would describe.
Qaude Cooper’s future contractual arrangement hasn’t helped the situation. Toulon is under the impression that he is a done deal, but others including the ARU and seemingly Cooper himself do not agree. Toulon then flexed its muscles with a financial threat directed squarely at Cooper and the ARU.
Copper might not worry too much about being as poor as Greece, but the club doesn’t fill the rugby community with any great confidence that it has players in the forefront of its mind. It is important to note that the details over Coopers contract situation are not totally open and Cooper cannot be totally removed of blame from the saga.
Rugby and its players have become commodities that generate big dollars for broadcasters, club owners and national bodies. However, Toulon seems to have lost touch with the spirit of the game and the competing desires of players in the modern context. We continue to place a high level of importance on international rugby fixtures, so it seems Toulon, the clubs and World Rugby bosses need to have a good chat about the existence and importance of both mediums.
Just recently Toulon have threatened to terminate Wales fullback Leigh Halfpenny’s contract if he decides to tour with Wales in 2016 rather than play for the club. Rugby organisations such as the ARU have had to come to terms with the fact that these foreign clubs are attractive to their players. They have accepted the draw that European and even Japanese club rugby continues to have in the Southern Hemisphere and elsewhere.
The ARU finally shifted its position on foreign player eligibility for the Wallabies, following the Springboks and All Blacks lead on flexible contracting models. Isn’t it about time these clubs came to the table to respect the complex and difficult situation that players face between their careers, financial stability and obtaining the ultimate feat of playing rugby, national selection.
The importance of representing one’s country at the pinnacle of rugby and any sport is an idea that I believe is still strong in Australia. It is most definitely strong in New Zealand.
How can Toulon expect to recruit, retain and build on their success when they go about threatening players with sanction, redundancy and financial ruin? I bet they will probably do just fine.
However, reputations can be built and destroyed quickly. If you were an Australian player thinking of making the switch to France you might not be calling Mourad Boudjellal too quickly after these recent episodes.
hexaNZgione
Guest
...and RCT is NOT about lifestyle, glamour or the other lazy tourist epithets found in your tabloid guide for tabloid hacks. Spend time there first. Live there. Those that do and care about this ancient battered arsenal harbour town, know better. The Stade Mayol fanbase recognises every player who comes and makes an effort in français, grassroots community involvement, team cohesion and dedication to training. Mourad Boudjellal knows what is to overcome unpromising beginnings and put his self-earnt money where his mouth is for the good and cohesion of his town. 'Toulon seems to have lost touch with the spirit of the game ' - nonsense. They have this vibrantly. The Club set-up for incoming étrangers ensures this. Effort and attitude has been sounded out ahead of any proposal. Read the Var-Matin online. Commiseration on your little lesson today - from a kiwi toulonnais ex-pat.
riddler
Guest
mate why does it have to be the worst? the situation is what it is.. how many rugby club presidents do you see going around saying someone has signed and has a foto with the player in that club's jersey? just doesn't happen.. don't know why you can't see the reality on that..
riddler
Guest
twas.. how many player's contracts have you seen? how many of us have seen any? how many have ever been made public? the guy signed a contract, he took the foto in the jersey (nobody in this day and age does that without the contract being signed, or if someone does then they have very little common sense about how the media works these days) unless u know the guy personally and give some facts then you know as little as the rest of us.. i imagine, note i say imagine, that behind the scenes right now, 3 people: his agent, toulon lawyer/rep and aru lawyer/rep.. are trying their best to figure a way out of this.. your continually sprouting of nobody has seen a contract is neither here nor there.. we will never ever see a players contract.. the guy signed and they are all now trying to find a solution.. also little spoken about part of all this tired affair is why did qru pull out of the negations? and once again, unless you know someone personally inside that very small bubble, which i sincerely doubt, then you are once again, putting your own bias on the speculation..
Jerry
Guest
Although you could also argue - Toulon are threatening legal action based on their claims of having a signed contract. They're either lying, mistaken or they have a signed contract. Which of those is more likely.
Jerry
Guest
Then Toulon should put that in their contracts. Except I don't think it's legal to do so. Toulon don't really have a leg to stand on, as far as I can see.
PapanuiPirate
Roar Pro
Not neccesarily true. I would agree with you with regard to most Common Law nations however the French have a very different Cvil law code which is less interpretive.
Train Without A Station
Roar Guru
If Cooper has actually signed a contract and reneged that's pretty poor form. Regardless of the circumstances if that's what happened he's given his word and is trying to break it. But I find it amusing that people without any evidence are just willing to believe the worst of him because of their original perception prior to what's happened. He doesn't have any form backflipping on contracts so I don't know why exactly you would believe Toulon over him. As far as I'm concerned we have no reason to believe either side until an impartial party is willing to comment. For now all that we actually know, is Toulon are claiming he signed a contract and nobody is supporting that claim yet. That may very well change.
Train Without A Station
Roar Guru
I'm not trying to prove anything. I'm just saying the only party that would have evidence of what they claim is Toulon and they have not provided any. The other end is saying that something that nobody has seen does not exist. Which seems more likely at this stage?
Bakkies
Guest
The FFR and LNR aren't going to make it public whether they've received a contract or not. Nor will they or a club post a picture of it for a paper or a website.
Leroy14
Guest
-- Comment from The Roar's iPhone app.
Leroy14
Guest
Country before club Heart before wallet If you fill your pockets with money instead of your heart with pride and dignity, then your life will unfulfilled. -- Comment from The Roar's iPhone app.
BeastieBoy
Guest
International and representative teams must always take precedence. That must be in the terms and conditions that all clubs worldwide operate under in all competitions. If Quade Cooper has signed a contract with Toulon then he should honor it and no one should interfere. There will be someone coming through in time for the next world cup.
lester
Guest
"Seems to me Toulon are wanting to have their cake and eat it too. They want test level players with a high profile garnered from test rugby but don’t want them to play test rugby once they sign for Toulon." That's exactly what they want and players who go there know full well when they go to Toulon that they are getting paid big dollars to prioritise their club games instead.
riddler
Guest
twas.. i know what you are trying to prove.. but the point is this contract and now.. if cooper has signed and there is a get clause.. so be it, pay it and move on.. if not.. then it will become difficult..
Train Without A Station
Roar Guru
Very hard to claim damages. Would need to suffer an actual loss. And loss of marketing opportunity or opportunity to contract somebody else is not a loss. Needs to be damages inflicted/caused.
Train Without A Station
Roar Guru
No. But you're believing the same guy who knowingly signed an under contract SBW without providing any evidence to support his claim. No evidence supports Cooper's claim though.
Brian USA
Guest
Except that no evidence has been shown that he signed a contract. French rugby has not come forward saying "We received and registered a contract from Toulon for Quade Cooper." There is uncertainty because Toulon is saying he is contracted, and the ARU were negotiating with him (likely because they did not believe he was contracted).
Jerry
Guest
"What do you expect the clubs to do, just lie down and lose the players they pay wages for?" The players they signed knowing full well they were international players who would be expecting to play international rugby? The players developed by another country? The international players with a significant profile with which Toulon can base their marketing on? Seems to me Toulon are wanting to have their cake and eat it too. They want test level players with a high profile garnered from test rugby but don't want them to play test rugby once they sign for Toulon.
Jerry
Guest
"Toulon have agreements where players can be released for some tests." Toulon have to release him for June tests, unless they want to flout the IRB regulations. Unless they specifically contracted that he wasn't gonna play those tests, they haven't got a leg to stand on. So they're not acting in good faith with him.
hopalong
Guest
Absolutely correct.