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Stirlo to play in Japan?

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Juan VdS

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It would seem Stirling Mortlock is seriously considering the possibility of playing in Japanese soil.

Originally posted by Scrum.com
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Australia skipper Stirling Mortlock will make a decision on his long-term playing future after the Wallabies' November Test tour of the northern hemisphere.

Mortlock, 32, visited Japan during his recent time off while recovering from a knee injury and was reportedly offered a AU$3.75 million contract with a club there prior to re-signing in Australia. He is off contract at the end of 2010.

"Basically I've got to work out my long-term future," he told AAP. "It's something I'll just have a look at down the track. At this stage, nothing's really changed. Probably after the (European) tour I'll be able to sit down and have a good long, hard look at that, where to next.

"It was a good opportunity to just go over there and have a look at it. Whenever I'm in a situation where you have to make a decision, I want to make a very informed decision.

"It was part of gaining an understanding of what it's like culturally, I've got a family and everything else so there's a lot of things you've got to factor in as far as making decisions about the future."

The Brumbies centre will head back to Japan with the national side at the end of October for a Bledisloe Cup Test match against New Zealand in Tokyo.

He has recently returned to their camp after missing the majority of the Tri-Nations through injury and is confident of taking his place in the line-up for the game. The Wallabies' other injury concerns include lock duo James Horwill and Nathan Sharpe as well as flanker Phil Waugh.
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Article link here.

:eek:
 
If I was him I actually think I'd go for it. To me he looks like he's slowly starting to decline, and with money like that on offer, why not?
 
Yeah... even if he was not declining, I assume Deans is going to leave him out sometime soon (the Wallabies do need to form their future backline and stick to it). Stirling is going to be 34 in 2011 and due to the unfortunate streak of injuries he's been through I doubt he'll ever regain his previous form.

Sounds like the end of career he deserves. Besides, the Japanese will love him and his plausible appearance in the league(s) there will significantly boost their interest for the game.
 
Shame if he dosn't make it to the WC. In my opinion, while he is getting on, I just think he is such an important figure in leading the Wallabies. If he takes the deal, I'd be happy for him, as he has been a great player over the years, and deserves a big pay off, but I think it would be great to see him keep playing through to 2011.
 
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Juan VdS @ Oct 6 2009, 07:14 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>
Yeah... even if he was not declining, I assume Deans is going to leave him out sometime soon (the Wallabies do need to form their future backline and stick to it). Stirling is going to be 34 in 2011 and due to the unfortunate streak of injuries he's been through I doubt he'll ever regain his previous form.

Sounds like the end of career he deserves. Besides, the Japanese will love him and his plausible appearance in the league(s) there will significantly boost their interest for the game.[/b]

The Japanese don't even know him. They already have George Gregan, Toutai Kefu, Semisi Naevo, Nili Latu etc... The JLeague is crap, and the public is only interested in University Rugby. They have only sold 12000 tickets for the Bledisloe in Tokyo, and probably half of it foreigners and corporates...
 
He should go to a ML side with a reasonable league and a few HEC matchs.
 
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (DonBilly @ Oct 6 2009, 03:15 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>
He should go to a ML side with a reasonable league and a few HEC matchs.[/b]
I think he knows his body wont survive another tough gruelling comp.....better to earn the bucks in a league where he can go on for another 5 years and then retire rich.
 

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