Danny Cipriani has made up his mind to move to Australia and join the Melbourne Rebels, The Times has been told.
The fallen idol of English rugby has decided to cut his losses and commit himself to the new Super 15 franchise in Victoria. It is understood that his decision to make a fresh start 10,000 miles away was relayed to Rod Macqueen, the Rebels head coach, yesterday. In confirming his interest in Cipriani on Wednesday, Macqueen had said how highly he rated him.
Once details on a likely two-year contract worth more than £200,000 a season are confirmed and a formal offer made, and provided there are no last-minute hitches, he will travel Down Under in October with Kelly Brook, his actress girlfriend. In doing so he will become the first England international to play club rugby in Australia in the professional era. His capture will be a coup for the team, who hope to attract up to five leading players from Britain.
In the 24 hours since The Times broke the story of the Melbourne Rebels’ interest in the London Wasps fly half, events have moved rapidly.
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Negotiations have been continuing with Gerard Tyrell, Cipriani’s lawyer at the London firm of Harbottle & Lewis. Cipriani spent yesterday at Twickenham with the England Saxons squad, for whom he has been selected to play at full back — not fly half — against Italy A in Treviso on Sunday.
For Cipriani, 22, who not so long ago was “the future” of English rugby, that was confirmation enough that he had reached a dead end in England, at least for the time being. A comment yesterday by Stuart Lancaster, the Saxons coach, can only have reinforced that message. “He’s got pace and as a broken-field runner, there aren’t many better,” Lancaster said. “But like all young players, he’s still developing and learning about the game.”
Cipriani’s readiness to turn his back on England is, on the face of it, staggering but perhaps, when put into context, not surprising. The Times has learnt that he had in principle made up his mind several days ago after being told by a close associate that Martin Johnson apparently did not consider him part of his plans for the immediate future, including the World Cup in New Zealand next year. The England team manager is said to have made it clear that he did not “trust” Cipriani.
Armed with that knowledge, the player, who last week had met John Connolly, the former Australia coach responsible for Rebels’ recruitment, realised that however well he performed, he would not be able to alter Johnson’s perception of him. Thus the decision in the end was straightforward.
A source close to Cipriani said: “Danny had to make sure that he was making the decision for the right reasons, that he was not running as far away as he could, but that the move would be good for him and his game in the long term. You have to think that even if he stays there two years, he will still only be 24 and with his best years ahead of him, including maybe two World Cups. When you add everything up it makes sense. It could be the making of him.”
However, it may also signal the end of him as a figure in English rugby. One cannot help but think that the laid-back Australian lifestyle could prove altogether too alluring and more suited to his nature and demeanour.
His departure will be a bitter blow to London Wasps both commercially and in playing terms, but perhaps Tony Hanks, the director of rugby, will not be surprised. Cipriani is out of contract this summer and that he had stalled on signing a new, improved offer was a clear sign that he believed that his future lay elsewhere, be it in France or farther afield.
Stade Français’s offer was considered too low and Perpignan felt that Cipriani was not the right man for them at present. With Paul Sackey rumoured to be attracting the attention of big-spending Toulon, uncertain times lie ahead for Wasps, the former English and European champions.
