England winger Paul Sackey claims it was a desire for a "fresh start" that propelled him to swap Wasps for ambitious French outfit Toulon.
Sackey was unveiled at a press conference on Thursday, after signing a two-year deal with Toulon.
The move sees the 30-year-old link up with former England team-mates Jonny Wilkinson and Tom May and he admits the pair helped him decide the time was right to bring an end to his five-year stint with Wasps.
"They had a little influence," said Sackey.
"I spoke to Tom May and others and they all told me that the club and the passion of the supporters were incredible.
"But, above all, I took this decision to have a fresh start.
"I wanted to change my environment and lifestyle. I could have gone to Paris, but that was too similar to London.
"I wanted to experience a real change, by signing for a club that offers me something different and has a lot of ambition.
"Toulon want to become a great French club again and that desire is attractive. For that reason, I feel that Toulon is made for me."
Sackey helped Wasps win two Guinness Premiership titles, the Heineken Cup and the Powergen Cup after moving back to the club from London Irish in 2005.
And, fearing he was settling into his comfort zone, the winger admitted he had to shake things up
"I experienced and won practically everything with Wasps and I needed a new challenge, to break the routine that had set in," added Sackey.
"I had been feeling and experiencing the same things for several season and I needed to leave to continue to have passion for rugby with the same intensity."
Sackey also revealed that the presence of former Sale coach Philippe Saint-Andre played a major part in his decision to move to the Stade Mayol.
"I've known him and respected him for a long time and it's clear that his presence influenced my decision," said Sackey.
"He's a superb coach and the current Toulon players have confirmed what I thought of him.
"He already tried to sign me twice when he coached Gloucester and Sale. So when he contacted me at the end of December, I didn't really hesitate."
Comments
pogmahon says...
A bit surprised this is newsworthy as he's not that good really is he?
Posted 15:24 05th March 2010