Rugby World Cup 2019: Ben Te’o rules himself out of England injury call-up after joining Toulon

Centre was overlooked for Eddie Jones’s 31-man England squad and has made himself unavailable for the emergency back-up list by moving to France

Thursday 22 August 2019 08:38 BST
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Rugby World Cup 2019: England's 31-man squad

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Ben Te’o has agreed a short-term deal with Toulon following his omission from England’s Rugby World Cup squad, the French Top 14 club said on Wednesday.

England coach Eddie Jones left the centre out of his 31-man squad last week, and Te’o will now be unavailable for selection as an injury replacement because the Rugby Football Union does not consider foreign-based players.

The 32-year-old was excluded from the final week of England’s training camp in Treviso following an altercation with teammate Mike Brown.

New Zealand-born Te’o, a former rugby league player in Australia, was made to apologise to his teammates in March after a late-night drinking session at the end of the Six Nations.

He will bolster Toulon’s ranks for the next three months, providing cover while the World Cup runs from 20 September until 2 November

The experienced centre, who has been capped 18 times by England, will undergo a medical on Friday before joining the squad for training next week.

Te’o left English Premiership side Worcester Warriors at the end of the 2018-19 campaign season after three seasons at Sixways.

Reuters

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