Yet ANOTHER club joins the race to sign England star Courtney Lawes – report

Former England international forward Courtney Lawes is being flooded with offers ahead of the 2024/25 season.

Lawes’ current contract with Northampton Saints expires at the end of the 2023/24 season, and clubs in France are lining up to secure his services.

Clubs across France interested

Last week, reports out of France linked the Test centurion with a move to ambitious PRO D2 outfit Provence, who have already signed Wales stars George North and Tomas Francis. This came after RC Toulon denied reports linking the back-five forward to the club.

According to that report by Rugbyrama, Lawes had visited the club’s facilities and discussed the possibility of him joining the side on a one or two-year contract.

However, it seems as if Provence is not the only side that is keen to add the 34-year-old to their books with a new report linking him with a move to Brive.

Like Provence, Brive are currently in the Pro D2 following their relegation from the Top 14 at the end of the 2022/23 season.

After eight wins from the opening 15 games of the 2023/24 season, Brive sit in seventh place overall on the log – just one spot outside of a potential play-off position and a shot at promotion.

According to French publication La Montagne, Lawes flew to Brive on Wednesday (10 January) to visit the club’s facilities as he did when earlier this month with Provence.

The report adds that Brive are looking to make a few big moves on the transfer market, and the ex-England star is amongst their top targets.

Large investment

English billionaire Ian Osborne has been the majority stakeholder at the club since August last year and, despite the side’s relegation, has been investing to help the club force their way back into France’s top-flight.

While two clubs in the second division in France have been linked with signing Lawes, it is understood that several Top 14 clubs are still in the running.

A previous report by The Rugby Paper stated that Racing 92 boss Stuart Lancaster was keen on reuniting with Lawes in Paris, having worked with him in the England set-up.

Lawes announced his retirement from international rugby during the Rugby World Cup last year, featuring in his final game for the Red Rose in the semi-final defeat to South Africa.

He has since been thriving without the pressures that come with international rugby and was named the Premiership Rugby Player of the Month for December.

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