Exeter Chiefs reveal 30 new contracts as Wales star effectively ends Test career

Wales star Tomas Francis appears to have ended his international career by signing a new contract at Gallagher Premiership side Exeter Chiefs. Francis is one of 30 players that the club have confirmed have signed new terms with the Devon based side.

Francis, who is stuck on 47 caps for Wales, falls below the threshold for Wales' Senior Player Selection Policy (SPSP), which demands that players have at least 60 caps if they wish to play outside of Wales and for Wales internationally. Francis Test career appears now to be over.

Exeter have secured the signing of their central stars, including Stuart Hogg, Jack Nowell, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Henry Slade and Joe and Sam Simmonds.

Rob Baxter also revealed that the Exeter Chiefs players who didn't sign contracts with the club won't necessarily be leaving.

Baxter told the club website: "Not every player has got an extension, but those who haven’t received an extension, it’s kind of irrelevant because they are players who may well be thinking ‘let’s see how the next year goes and where I stand’.

“With those guys it doesn’t mean they will be leaving, but because we have ourselves in a salary cap position where we are pretty well settled for a few years, we also have that little bit of room that if a player does decide to move on, we can replace them."

“I’m delighted with what has happened. It seems strange really, because there has been an awful lot of news coming out from other clubs in regards what is happening around pay cuts, players leaving, players staying, yet we have got on with our business pretty quickly.

NEW CONTRACTS

Don Armand

Corey Baldwin

Luke Cowan-Dickie

Alex Cuthbert

Dave Dennis

Ollie Devoto

Dave Ewers

Tomas Francis

Tom Hendrickson

Alec Hepburn

Jonny Hill

Stuart Hogg

Billy Keast

Jannes Kirsten

Sean Lonsdale

Jack Nowell

Tom Price

Joe Simmonds

Sam Simmonds

Harvey Skinner

Sam Skinner

Henry Slade

Marcus Street

Stuart Townsend

Jacques Vermeulen

Ian Whitten

Harry Williams

Will Witty

Olly Woodburn

Jack Yeandle