New Zealand fly-half Colin Slade signs for French outfit Pau
All Blacks fly-half Colin Slade has signed a three-year contract with Pau, who have just won promotion to the Top 14, the club confirmed on Monday.
All Blacks fly-half Colin Slade has signed a three-year contract with Pau, who have just won promotion to the Top 14, the club confirmed on Monday.
Slade, 27, is considered the fourth-choice fly-half in New Zealand behind Beauden Barrett, Dan Carter and Aaron Cruden.
Slade, who has played for the Crusaders for the past year after previously lining up for the Highlanders, joins a club coached by former All Blacks number 10 Simon Mannix.
I have given it a lot of thought and considered all my options, but I am now satisfied that moving to Pau after this year is the right decision for me at this point in my life
“This recruitment once again underlines the club’s ambition,” Mannix said at the weekend after Pau assured their promotion from the second division ProD2 with a 31-5 victory over Montauban.
"Colin Slade is one of the top 10 in the world who has reached his peak at 27 years of age. For me, Colin is a really, really good all-round player and a really nice young man off the pitch.
"I can tell you that he's arriving at Pau in a very good state of mind and is a player who can only pull the team higher."
Slade said it was not an easy decision to walk away from New Zealand rugby following the World Cup, but he was excited by the challenge ahead.
"I have given it a lot of thought and considered all my options, but I am now satisfied that moving to Pau after this year is the right decision for me at this point in my life," Slade said.