Toulouse have confirmed the signing of one of New Zealand rugby’s most-capped players and pivotal member in a World Cup-winning All Blacks campaign.
Kiwi great Owen Franks, who has not played for the All Blacks since 2019, has joined the Top 14 giants for the duration of the 2023 World Cup, the French champions announced on Wednesday.
“Owen Franks joins us as a World Cup joker. The All Black prop will bring us his experience during the competition. Welcome Owen,” Toulouse said on social media.
The 35-year-old prop won 108 Test caps for the All Blacks and helped his countrymen win the Webb Ellis Cup in 2011 and 2015.
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𝗢𝘄𝗲𝗻 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗸𝘀 nous rejoint en tant que 𝗷𝗼𝗸𝗲𝗿 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗽𝗲 𝗱𝘂 𝗠𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗲 🔥
Le pilier international All Blacks vient apporter son expérience durant la compétition 💪
Bienvenue Owen 🔴⚫ pic.twitter.com/Xy8ucoBPPR
— Stade Toulousain (@StadeToulousain) August 2, 2023
He missed out on the 2019 edition and joined English club Northampton before returning to New Zealand to play for the Hurricanes.
Toulouse will lose around 15 players to the World Cup, including the France tighthead Dorian Aldegheri. Current All Black Nepo Laulala is set to join the champions after the World Cup.
Franks, who is the ninth World Cup joker to sign for Toulouse, will be needed for the first three rounds of the Top 14 which take place before the World Cup begins. Toulouse open their defence with a trip to Bayonne on August 18.
© Agence France-Presse
Photo: Matt Roberts/Getty Images