Marshall in shock Montpellier move
Wed, 16 Jul 2008 16:01
French giants Montpellier score a major coup on Wednesday when they revealed that they had signed All Black scrumhalf Justin Marshall from EDF Energy Cup champions Ospreys.
In a statement on the club website coach Didier Nourault said the 34-year-old international No.9 is "exactly the player we need".
The club confirmed that Marshall had signed a one-year deal, with an option for another year.
The club also confirmed that Jacques Schutte, from the Falcons in South Africa, and Santiago Bottini (Béziers) will join Marshall at the French Top 14 club.
But it is the signing of Marshall that is the team's biggest coup.
"He will bring a lot to the club, with 81 Test caps to his credit, and young scrumhalves like Julien and Adrien Tomas will be able to learn a lot from him," Nourault added.
The Ospreys' inability to guarantee Marshall first-choice status ahead of Welsh scrumhalf Mike Phillips next season is thought to have sparked the move to France.
The Welsh region are expected to target another scrumhalf within a month.
With Phillips recovering from a serious knee injury and not expected back until the end of September and Martin Roberts joining the Scarlets, young Rhys Webb is the only fit scrumhalf on the Ospreys' books.
Marshall joined the Ospreys from Leeds Tykes in April 2006 on a two-year deal.
He took up an option of a third year in 2007, extending his deal to the end of the 2008/9 season, and was believed to be earning close to £200,000 per year.
