Corey Flynn has signed a two year contract with Toulouse in France starting after the current Crusaders season.
This announcement comes on the same day as the All Blacks training squad was released.
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Flynn has always been a fringe player for the New Zealand national team, but All Blacks coach Steve Hansen has been candid about his lack of quality hookers – perhaps nodding towards Flynn for inclusion.
Flynn has however not been included in the training squad, which begs the question whether it his move to France or Hansen’s own choice that has resulted in his omission.
Flynn has said the time is right for him to move on to the next step of his rugby career and he is excited about the opportunity.
“This has been a really big decision for me and my family, but we are confident that it is the right thing for us at the moment and now that the decision has been made we’re really looking forward to it,” Flynn said.
Crusaders CEO Hamish Riach confirmed that Flynn would complete the current Super Rugby season before leaving for Toulouse.
“I know that Flynnie remains fully committed to the Crusaders at the moment and the time for a fitting farewell for him will be at the end of this season.”
“On behalf of the entire organisation I just want to acknowledge what a huge contribution he has made and what a legacy he will leave behind,” Riach said.
Crusaders Head Coach Todd Blackadder also acknowledged Flynn’s contribution to the Crusaders.
“Corey is the most capped Crusader in history with 142 games to his name to date, so there is no denying that he will leave a hole when he departs.”
“We have some very talented young hookers ready to step in and fill that gap, but the hole he leaves as a senior player with so much experience and mana [prestige of character] is harder to fill.”
“We will miss his presence around here but we fully respect his decision to go on his own terms and wish him the best for the future.”
Flynn will depart before the NPC season starts so will not play any more games for Canterbury, which Canterbury Head Coach Scott Robertson called ‘the end of an era’.
“When a stalwart like Corey moves on it feels like the end of an era because they’ve been so influential to the team over such a long period of time,” Robertson said.
“We’ll all miss having Corey around but we’ll be supporting him from afar while he plays for Toulouse, and know that he’ll be continuing to pay a keen interest in the progress of this Canterbury team.”