John Fallon reports from Perpignan
PADDY JACKSON HAS confirmed he is in talks with a number of clubs about a possible move away from Perpignan if, as expected, the Catalan club is relegated from the Top 14 at the end of the season.
Jackson confirmed that he has a release clause in his two-year contract with Perpignan which allows him to leave if they go down to Pro D2.
The clause is standard for most international players when they join a club who compete in a league where there is relegation.
Lyon were the first club to emerge as Jackson’s possible next destination and while the out-half declined to confirm what clubs are interested, it is believed that Declan Kidney’s London Irish might be keen.
Kidney gave Jackson his Irish senior international debut when he drafted him in to play Scotland in the 2013 Six Nations.
“There have been a few clubs which have spoken to me. That is really the stage it is at, at the minute,” said Jackson, whose side fell to their latest defeat when they were beaten by Connacht in the European Challenge Cup at the weekend.
“If they go down yes, but that is just a decision I am going to have to make between myself and the coaches here,” added Jackson, when asked if he had a release clause.
“It is something I am just looking at the moment. But the main focus is trying to play well and get our win.”
Jackson expressed his thanks to Perpignan when he joined during the summer for giving him the chance to resurrect his career.
Both Jackson and Stuart Olding were acquitted in March of raping a woman in June 2016. The two players, who had their contracts revoked in April this year following an IRFU and Ulster review which was conducted after the Belfast rape trial in March, are now pursuing their careers in France with Olding playing for Brive in Pro D2.
Efforts by both players to claim back their legal costs were dismissed on Friday by Judge Patricia Smyth, who presided over the trial earlier this year at Belfast Crown Court. Jackson’s legal costs have been estimated at £450,000 while Olding, who was granted free legal aid during the nine-week trial, is estimated to face a legal bill of £150,000.
Jackson, who will be 27 next month, was seen as the star signing as Perpignan tried to scramble a team together last summer after promotion.
Jackson on the attack against Connacht. Source: Billy Stickland/INPHO
The club had been relegated for the first time in their 116-year history four years earlier but, like most promoted teams in France, had little time to bolster their squad to compete in the top flight.
Jackson made a bright start to life in France and while his form has dipped of late, Perpignan’s difficulties run much deeper with a pack that lacks punch and accuracy and a backline that constantly breaks down.