Stade Rochelais has achieved a new masterstroke on the transfer market, in anticipation of next season, 2022-2023. At the end of his contract with Racing 92, with whom he had extended for one season, the former Biarrot Teddy Thomas will return to the Atlantic coast by joining the Maritimes in July, for three years, according to information from Sud-Ouest.
The 28-year-old international winger (28 capes, 1.85 m, 98 kg) will find Ronan O’Gara, who had trained him until 2017, when he was in charge of the defense of Ciel and White. In Racing since 2014, Teddy Thomas has played 96 matches and scored 52 tries for Jacky Lorenzetti’s club.
At the end of 2020, the Ile-de-France leaders had made their player understand that they did not intend to extend him. Too expensive, around 30,000 euros per month, for ups and downs according to them.
“The fact is that I get injured regularly, confided the player just before the World Cup in Japan, in September 2019, for which he had not been selected. Over the past three, four years, I haven’t made any big mistakes. I know where people are going to come from: my lifestyle, etc. But that’s not the problem at all. If it was, it would be easy! It is much deeper and, unfortunately, I am the first victim. “
On the market for several months, Thomas had not had any serious contact. The Toulouse Stadium had seemed interested for a time but had quickly given up in front of the amount of the salary. Finally, the international winger had agreed to lower his claims substantially, enough to convince the Ciel et Blancs to extend him for an additional season, the 8th. Another element had weighed in the direction of this extension: the arrival at the Ile-de-France in spring 2021 of Gaël Fickou, a great friend of Teddy, from the Stade Français.
