There’s a new twist to the Rhys Carre saga, with the revelation that the Saracens-bound prop is qualified for England and not tied to Wales.
The Cardiff Blues loosehead will be joining Sarries at the end of this season , as exclusively revealed by WalesOnline last weekend.
He will still be able to play for Wales as the WRU 60-cap rule doesn’t apply to uncapped players who haven’t been selected for the senior squad.
But the highly-rated 21-year-old could also be selected by England, as it’s understood he is eligible through a family connection.
He is not bound to Wales despite having played for the U20s for two seasons, figuring in both the Six Nations and World Championship.
That’s because his appearances for them came in 2017 and 2018 and the U20s were replaced by the A team as the WRU’s capture side in 2016.
That’s despite the fact there hasn’t been a Wales A fixure since the second-string team was designated as the capture side.
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So England wouldn’t have to wait for Carre to become eligible on residency grounds and it could lead to a tug of war for his services.
It’s also emerged that the former Cowbridge Comprehensive pupil is moving to Sarries for substantially less money than he was offered by the Blues.
But it appears he had already decided to join the two-times European champions when the Arms Park outfit made their contract bid.
Commenting on Carre’s departure, Blues coach John Mulvihill said: “I think it could be a big blow to him in his development.
“I think he has had some really good development here through all the under-age pathways.
“I know he has spoken to Wayne Pivac and the current Welsh coaches as well.
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“I still believe his best way forward was to be here and he would be in the Wales set-up within probably 12 to 14 months.
“But sometimes young people make decisions and he’s got to back his decisions.
“It just opens the door for someone else to come into our programme.”
The Blues were always keen to retain Carre, who has made a big impression in his 17 appearances for the region with his ball-carrying and physicality.
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But they had to hold off on making him a contract offer amid the Project Reset discussions over the future of the regional game in Wales.
Mulvihill added: “I think Project Reset has had an effect in some areas.
“We had to wait three or four months and, if you have a window open for that long, people come in and have a look and that’s what’s happened with Rhys.
“When we could finally sit down and talk, it was substantially a bigger offer we made than he received (from Saracens).
“That’s the disappointing thing, that it’s not really about money, he just felt his development would be a lot quicker in leaving.
“Sometimes in development the best place is right in front of your face and he just couldn’t see it.
“But people make decisions and we move on.”
