Marland Yarde joins Sale Sharks on three-year deal as Harlequins let England wing leave for 'good of the club'
England wing completes rare mid-season move after being told he has no future at Quins
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Marland Yarde has signed a three-year contract with Sale Sharks after being told he did not have a future at Harlequins, with the club’s director of rugby John Kingston deciding that the England international no longer fit the culture that he is trying to breed.
As reported by the Independent last Sunday, 25-year-old Yarde has missed three training sessions this season, the latest of which saw him absent for the captain’s run on Friday 20 October ahead of Harlequins’ 41-10 European Champions Cup defeat by Wasps.
After confirming that Yarde had been dropped for disciplinary reasons, Kingston then left Yarde out of the side last weekend against Worcester Warriors, when it became abundantly clear that the wing was suddenly deemed surplus to requirements at the Twickenham Stoop.
Premiership rivals Sale swooped for Yarde immediately, with an announcement coming just after 6am on Wednesday morning announcing the deal.
However, while Kingston wished Yarde well, he once again hinted that problems off the field were the reason why Quins took the unusual decision to let a player leave mid-way through the season.
“Marland is a top player and I have a great relationship with him,” Kingston said. “We have enjoyed working together over the last three years, and I want to thank him for his contribution to the club and wish him well for the future.
I am building a positive environment and culture at Harlequins, on and off the field, which I believe will ultimately allow us to challenge for honours
“He's played really well for us this year, but the decision for Harlequins to allow Marland to speak to Sale was made because I felt it was in the best interest of the club.
“Every decision I make is with the intention of doing the right thing for Harlequins Football Club, and that's the way it will always be.
“I am building a positive environment and culture at Harlequins, on and off the field, which I believe will ultimately allow us to challenge for honours.”
Yarde, who joined Quins from London Irish in 2014, has 13 England caps to his name, scoring eight tries along the way. However, he was left out of Eddie Jones’s training squad for the autumn internationals last week, with Anthony Watson, Jonny May and Denny Solomona selected ahead of him – while Bath wing Semesa Rokoduguni was called up to replace the injured Elliot Daly on Monday to show just how far Yarde has fallen down the pecking order.
He last featured for England on the summer tour of Argentina this year in which he started both matches and scored a try in the First Test, although his selection came with Watson, Daly and Jack Nowell away with the British and Irish Lions.
The Sale director of rugby, Steve Diamond, initially played down any talks between the club and Yarde last Friday, despite reports suggesting otherwise, but after the deal was completed he expressed his delight with the acquisition of an “international-class” level player.
“Marland is a very exciting player and he will very much suit our attacking style of play,” Diamond said. “Though Marland has lots of experience, he is still very young with his best years ahead of him.
“I am sure that he will fit in perfectly with the rest of our squad, and we are all very excited about welcoming Marland to Sale Sharks.”
The move is something of a first for the Premiership, with players rarely switching clubs outside of the close-season unless they are players from the Southern Hemisphere. However, Diamond stressed that Sale will remain active in searching for more reinforcements of the highest level.
He said: “Marland fits our criteria of international-class recruitment, and our search for a world-class lock, prop and centre continues.”
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