Leinster have confirmed the signing of experienced All Black utility back Jordie Barrett on a short-term deal from December to the end of next season.
The deal was included in negotiations with the New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU), as Barrett extended his contract with his country’s governing body until 2028.
Barrett and his family – including fellow All Blacks Beauden and Scott – lived in County Meath for a period in the early 2000s, and the 27-year-old is excited to return to improve his game.
“It’s going to be a great place for me to develop as a rugby player in a different environment where I’ll learn so many different things,” Barrett said.
“Ireland is a special place for the Barrett family. We’ve got so many great family connections in Oldcastle, in County Meath and throughout Dublin.
“To have an opportunity to go back and meet some family and friends and connections that were made twenty years ago is pretty cool.”
It’s another statement of intent from the four-time Champions Cup winners, who will hope they have a fifth title by the time Barrett arrives after they ended a run of three straight knockout stage defeats to La Rochelle in last Saturday’s quarter-final.
On the same day Leinster announced that hooker Dan Sheehan, pivotal to that win at the weekend, would be signing a two-year deal with the Irish Rugby Football Union which takes his salary off Leinster’s hands.
Questions will grow about how level the playing field is between Ireland’s four provinces, especially with these two deals considered alongside RG Snyman’s move from Munster to Leinster confirmed in December 2023.
And if the Dubliners can’t end their six-year wait for a Champions Cup this season at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in May, they will be once again be red-hot favourites to regain the title in the next campaign.
For exclusive stories and all the detailed rugby news you need, subscribe to The Rugby Paper website, digital edition, or newspaper from as little as 14p a day.
