Mourad Boudjellal, the owner of Toulon, has revealed that the club are weighing up the possibility of cancelling Wales star Leigh Halfpenny’s contract due to his persistent injuries.
The fullback has yet to make his debut for the club having sustained a groin injury in pre-season, although Boudjellal now claims Halfpenny may have been carrying the injury when he arrived at the club. He also missed the end of last season with an arm injury, but made a full recovery after undergoing surgery.
Toulon were initially treating the groin injury on a week-by-week basis, but it is understood now that it might need surgery, which would keep Halfpenny out for months, to the obvious frustration of Boudjellal.
“Today, we must address this issue because we need a world-class goalkicker. We’re awaiting the medical update,” the Toulon boss told local newspaper Varmatin.
“It should be out for another two or three weeks. But the problem that we have now is that we think he may have arrived at Toulon with that injury. Now we have the impression that yes, he was injured when he signed for Toulon.
“If this is the case, we haven’t ruled out terminating his contract. We pay enough for players (when they’re away) for their national teams. We don’t feel like preparing Halfpenny for the Rugby World Cup for Wales.
“We’re conducting an investigation. I will know the whys and hows this week.”
Toulon recently announced the signing of Argentinian international Juan Martin Hernandez, who will join the club in January, which would ease the pain of Halfpenny’s potential exit.
Photo by: Patrick Khachfe / Onside Images
11 replies on “Toulon to cancel Halfpenny contract?”
Wow, what a nice employer Boudjellal is. Come back home Leigh, you can try out one of these new dual contracts.
Simply wise management.
This really is appalling. Yes, it must be frustrating to pay large amounts of money to players that can not play, but every team deals with that at some point.
Surely there is no clause in the agreement that Toulon can cancel it due to injury? Especially when he has missed all of about 1 months worth of games. It’s ludicrous.
If I was a professional rugby player, Toulon would be the last place I’d want to play based on their view of player welfare. This kind of attitude towards injury is what leads to concussed players entering the field of play, and injured players being injured further.
If I was Halfpenny, I’d be on the first flight back to Wales with a pen at the ready for one of those dual-contracts.
In France with those huge wage bills it is a case of ‘He who pays the Piper…’.
I think Boudjellal’s argument here is not that Halfpenny has gotten injured since signing for Toulon, but that the injury was known about and not declared prior to his contract being agreed and signed.
These elite players represent a massive investment for clubs, especially when they have to release them for national duty – and above all in a world cup year. When signing a player, I think it entirely within the club’s rights and only logical to ask that the player discloses all injuries. There may well be a clause in the contract to that effect.
If it turns out that Ha’penny’s injury was incurred and known about prior to his signing and yet had not been disclosed, then to my mind, Boudjellal is entirely in the right – it is not Toulon’s place to act as a rehabilitation centre for him.
Of course, I’m not sure how you’d prove that the injury was known about before the contract…
As for Toulon and their view of player welfare, given the number of international players seeing out the end of their careers there – many of whom spent an awful lot of time injured previously, eg J Wilkinson or J Smith – they must be doing something right.
Well, Boudjellal also demanded the return of Bryan Habana, Bakkies Botha and Juan Martín Fernández Lobbe to Toulon during the weekends there are no Rugby Championship tests being played or face not being paid….
This is what he said:
“There is something that is quite simple – they defend the colours of their country and are paid rather comfortably by Toulon,” he said.
“The IRB decided the rules. That’s fine but I’m not here to fund South African and Argentine rugby and I will not.
“These players will return as we need them. If they do not and we receive no fee, they will not be paid by us because they will not be present in Toulon.
“We’ll see if the rules of the IRB prevail or if it is the rules of the Labour Code for French private enterprise. In any case, it is an aberration.
“We have reached a stage where we have to ask the opinion of the French law. Therefore, we will ask the French judges whether a foreign federation has the right to take my employees and force me to pay them.
“It’s just unthinkable we have players who are paid very well by us but cannot not play them. Moreover, I have to pay the players replacing them. This is a double sanction.”
The onus is on the buying club (ie. Toulon) to conduct a full medical before signing a new player. Can’t blame Halfpenny
Regardless of injuries, lack of knowledge, pay, etc what we have here is a boss discussing whether he will terminate the contract of a player, not with the player but in the press. Imagine if you were reading this about your employment? It’s wrong.
No argument with that Brighty.
I’d like to think that this had all been discussed with the player before any comments were made in the press, but if this is the first Halfpenny has heard of it, then it’s deeply wrong
I’d say that even if was discussed with Halfpenny it’s still not right as no decision has been made. You shouldn’t release details of an employees position until he knows exactly what is going on. Boudjellal runs that club like his own little fiefdom – in case anyone suggests it then I will say that I disagree that it’s his money so he is entitled to. Employment laws and rights are for everyone, even highly paid sports stars.
On the rugby side – Halfpenny should leave now anyway. Boudjellal has made his priorities clear, Halfpenny knows he’s one injury away from being thrown out. Not the most inspiring way to create club unity.
Last minute of a match, potential try saving tackle, you have to bust a gut to get there … maybe that 0.5% of doubt in your mind now about the utter tool you’re putting your body on the line for here will slow you down a fraction and you miss it?
Halfpenny signed for Toulon in January didn’t he? So how could he have been suffering from a groin injury at that time, passed a medical, and then played International rugby before suffering the shoulder injury which has subsequently kept him out of action?
And if their issue is with him arriving at the club with an injury, between him signing in January and pre-season beginning, surely that’s a risk they should be aware of?
He should just go, he won’t be short on offers, and I’m not convinced he would have made their first choice team anyway.