In-demand Moriarty in link with Leicester

LEICESTER Tigers have reportedly joined the scramble for the services of Ross Moriarty as he heads towards the end of his contract with the Dragons.

The Rugby Paper suggest that the fallen English giants have emerged as favourites to sign the 25-year-old Wales international.

They have become the latest Gallagher Premiership club to be linked to Moriarty, while French sides Lyon, Montpellier and Toulon are also said to have run the rule over him.

And in Wales, Cardiff Blues and the Ospreys have been suggested as possible destinations for one of Welsh rugby’s most physical players, while the Dragons do not appear to have given up hope of retaining him.

If Moriarty leaves the regional scene he would fall foul of Welsh rugby’s selection rule whereby exiled players need to have 60 or more caps to be eligible for Wales.

A big call awaits the 42-cap back rower, then, with his contract in Newport due to expire this summer.

Moriarty is known to be impressed by Dean Ryan at the Dragons and the Ospreys have been strongly linked to him. But he started this year’s Six Nations on the bench against Italy and there are suggestions that under Welsh rugby’s new pay structure he might need to take a significant pay cut to stay on the regional scene.

The situation changes when international money and bonuses are taken into account, but Moriarty will know through experience that Test selection comes with no guarantees.

So, the probability is he will at least listen to what suitors outside Wales are proposing.

Leicester are 11th in the English top flight and would have been under threat of relegation were it not for Saracens’ salary-cap transgressions. But the east Midlanders are determined to restore their fortunes and are looking for big-hitting players to take them forward.

The tough and uncompromising Moriarty would be potentially attractive on that front, while his ability to play at six or No. 8 increases his appeal.

Another plus for a club outside Wales is that he would be available at all times if he were not playing Test rugby.