Bath have not given up trying to sign Steffon Armitage from Toulon after initial talks broke down over a £300,000 transfer fee for the 29-year‑old England back-row, who has three years remaining on his contract with the French club.
Toulon are considering whether it would be in their interests to let the five-cap forward go for a year, for a lesser fee but not on loan, and re-sign him next season. Armitage is ambitious to play in the World Cup next year, which will probably be his last opportunity, but England’s policy is not to select anyone playing abroad.
Armitage, who has not played Test rugby since 2010 was last month named in an extended France squad after he had said he was prepared to switch nationalities.
The regulation stipulating that a player may appear for only one country has been relaxed for those nations taking part in the 2016 Olympics, and when he was picked by Les Bleus he needed to take part in only one major sevens tournament to facilitate the switch. That was last month changed to four by the International Rugby Board, leaving Toulon with Armitage missing up to 10 weeks of the season should he continue to go down the sevens route; the club would be obliged under IRB regulations to release him for each event for which he was chosen.
Bath are anxious to sign a leading back-row because of long-term injuries to Francois Louw, Alafoti Fa’osiliva, Matt Garvey and Carl Fearns. If any is expected to be out of action for 12 weeks or more, Bath can sign a replacement under the salary cap regulations and Armitage, who earns a reported £320,000 a year at Toulon, is the preferred choice.
Although the Rugby Football Union refused Bath’s request to help out financially, Armitage’s selection in England’s elite player squad, which will be chosen next week and again in January, would earn the club a six-figure sum.
If Armitage used the sevens route as a means of qualifying for France, it would be expedient of Toulon to let him go for a year. The club’s head coach, Bernard Laporte, said: “He’s an important player in our squad and I want him to stay here, but if he is to have a chance of playing for England in the World Cup, he has to find a Premiership club. The problem is that we are already well into the season and something has to happen quickly. It will be difficult.”
Bath in effect have until Friday to secure Armitage. Toulon name their team on Friday to face the Scarlets on Sunday in the European Rugby Champions Cup and if he plays it would make him ineligible to appear in the tournament for another club this season. His value to Bath would fall with an England call-up likely, for the Six Nations if not the autumn internationals.
Wales are hoping that Racing Métro release at least one of their three Wales internationals in the coming weeks with the flanker Dan Lydiate the most likely to return home having fallen out of favour with the joint head coaches Laurent Labit and Laurent Travers.
Lydiate has started only two of Racing’s nine Top 14 matches this season, both defeats, and has been linked with a move to Ospreys on a dual contract with the Welsh Rugby Union, although the Welsh regions have not been party to any discussions. Racing’s other two Welshmen, the centre Jamie Roberts and the scrum-half Mike Phillips, said they were baffled by the speculation.
