Halfpenny could face pay cut if he stays withToulon
TOULON are looking to slash Leigh Halfpenny’s wages, according to reports in the French media.
The Wales and Lions full-back has been negotiating a contract extension for months now, but the deal still isn’t done.
And, according to Midi Olympique, he may have to start tightening his belt.
He is currently on a reported €600,000-a-year at Toulon, where he has spent the past three seasons.
But the paper says the club’s multimillionaire owner Mourad Boudjellal has offered him a two-year extension at €350,000 a season.
That’s reportedly because he has played an average of 10 Top 14 matches a season for club since arriving from Cardiff Blues in 2014.
Midi Olympique reports that the offer is “far from satisfactory” for the 28-year-old Halfpenny, pictured right, and it claims Boudjellal wouldn’t be surprised to see him leave.
However, it is understood the player’s representatives are still optimistic that a deal can be done,
If Halfpenny was to leave Toulon, he would have no shortage of offers.
Cardiff Blues have long been keen to bring him back to the Arms Park on a Welsh Rugby Union national dual contract.
They came tantalisingly close to getting their man on a £420,000-a-year package, only for the deal to fall through over the length of the contract the Union were offered.
Halfpenny wanted it to end after the 2019 World Cup, enabling him to have a crack at Super Rugby, but the WRU were not comfortable with setting the precedent of a contract finishing midseason. If he were to become available, the Blues may well look to resume negotiations afresh in conjunction with the Union. The 71-cap full-back has also been a target for Dai Young’s Wasps in the past, but it seems unlikely that they would re-enter the market on this occasion.
One other potential suitor would be Aviva Premiership side Bath, who have been reported as looking to recruit him from the season after next and might be interested in bringing that deal forward.
Halfpenny is expected to fly out to New Zealand with the British & Irish Lions party on Monday. Where Gatland’s controversial calls may lie: Pages 52&53