Thompson looks overseas as Tait and Flood leave Falcons
** BREAKING NEWS **
NEWCASTLE Falcons chairman Dave Thompson has promised to deliver "two Super 14 players" to compensate for the shock departure of England duo Mathew Tait and Toby Flood.
Tait will join Sale Sharks on a three-year contract at the end of the current campaign, while Flood is expected to be confirmed as a Leicester Tigers player at the start of next week.
The Falcons will receive a combined transfer fee of around £200,000 for the pair, and Thompson is ready to invest in two high-profile foreign signings following a dreadful season that has seen his club slip to tenth in the Guinness Premiership table and lose the services of director of rugby John Fletcher.
However, Newcastle supporters will remain desperately disappointed at the departure of two of the Falcons' leading lights, and the apparent abandonment of a commitment to the retention and development of young English players.
Both Tait and Flood joined Newcastle as teenagers and, along with fellow backs Jamie Noon and Jonny Wilkinson, the pair have earned the club's Kingston Park Academy a reputation as one of the best breeding grounds in the country.
That reputation has now been severely compromised, with Tait's departure in particular calling the Falcons' ambition into question.
Thompson has claimed that he was forced to sanction the 22-year-old's departure as the much-trumpeted arrangement between Premiership clubs and the RFU means he would only be available for around half of Newcastle's league games next season.
However, the Falcons chairman was aware of Tait's likely lack of involvement when he agreed a new contract with the Wolsingham-born centre in February. He might claim otherwise, but it is hard to escape the feeling that this weekend's events have been little more than a cost-cutting exercise.
Newcastle's loss is certainly Sale's gain, with the North-West club having acquired the services of one of the most highly-rated young players in the country.
"This is fantastic news for the club," said Sale director of rugby Philippe Saint Andre. "Mathew is a naturally-gifted rugby player who can play at full-back, wing and outside centre. Although he is only 22 years old, he has already won 23 caps for England and has still tremendous potential to develop further as a player."
Tait, who was England's best player in last autumn's World Cup final defeat to South Africa, is relishing his new challenge in the North-West, having repeatedly been shuffled from one position to the other this season.
"I am really looking forward to joining Sale Sharks," said the North-Easterner. "I know some of the Sale Sharks players from the England squad and am looking forward to meeting the rest of the squad in pre-season training. I have really enjoyed my time at Newcastle Falcons, but I am now looking forward to a new challenge at Sale Sharks and playing with a different group of players."
Flood, who was arguably England's best back in the recent Six Nations championship, is expected to be confirmed as a Leicester player next week. London Wasps have also inquired about his availability, but Newcastle are understood to have agreed a fee of around £100,000 with the Welford Road club.
With forward Ben Woods also leaving Kingston Park later this month, Thompson will be forced to oversee a major summer overhaul. He will prioritise the purchase of overseas players who will be available for the whole of the Falcons' domestic campaign, and is expected to appoint a new director of rugby in place of current stand-in Steve Bates.
"Having four of our first-choice back-line away with England for so long this year, and the fact that they would miss half of our league games next season, has been a major consideration in the decision to allow both Toby and Mathew to move," said Thompson.
"The impact of four of our back-line going out en-masse and then returning at various stages of the season has caused us certain difficulties as we look to get this team to where it needs to be, and we felt that the situation had to be addressed for the long-term good of the club.
"Whilst we remain committed supporters of England and of English rugby, the interests of Newcastle Falcons remain our foremost concern, and it is with that in mind we have agreed to these changes.
"All three players (Flood, Tait and Woods) still had a year left to run on their contracts, and the club will receive transfer fees for both Toby and Mathew.
"We are currently in advanced negotiations with two Super 14 players, and hope to have some positive news to report on that front in the near future.
"I would like to thank Toby, Ben and Mathew for their contribution during their time at Kingston Park and wish them well for the future at their respective new clubs."
3:26pm Saturday 3rd May 2008
Print 
Email this 
Comment
What are these links for?
If you liked this article and would like to share it with others on the web who might be searching for good content we've made it easy for you to do it.
At the bottom of all articles, you'll see links to six sites. These sites - commonly called 'social bookmark' or 'social news' sites - have large communities of web users who share and rate interesting, useful and fun things on the web.
Clicking the links will automatically add the address of the story you are reading to one of these sites, letting you share it with others. Each site will ask you to register to share stories. Registration is free and once a member, you can store, recommend and search for stories that interest you.
More on Digg
More on del.icio.us
More on Furl
More on reddit
More on NowPublic/
More on Yahoo!
