Koch the latest Test player to declare for Saracens - reports
Springbok Vincent Koch is set to become the latest Saracens player to declare for the club - according to reports.
The Evening Standard report that the South African prop has refused advances from several rival clubs in favour of staying at the North London side, despite their automatic relegation to the Championship next season.
Koch had been strongly linked with a move to Sale Sharks, the PRO14 and even a potential return to South Africa with one of the nation's Super Rugby franchises.
Koch, who joined Saracens in 2016, signed an extension with the men in black for the next four seasons until 2022 back in 2018. Koch could have opted for an early release from the contract due to the relegation, but instead appears eager to stay for the club's year in the RFU Championship.
Koch would be the third big name in recent weeks to declare their loyalty to the Saracens. England stars Elliot Daly and Jamie George will be staying, adding two to a significant cohort of big-name players staying put.
It is expected that Owen Farrell, Maro Itoje, Brad Barritt, Jackson Wray, Alex Goode and the Vunipolas - among others - will follow suit.
He was part of the Saracens squad which retained the European Cup in 2017, earning man of the match in the semi-final, and has since won another alongside two Premiership titles.
The tighthead prop’s performances over the years have seen him a consistent selection in the Springboks squad having made his international debut against New Zealand in the 2015 Rugby Championship. He played in the Rugby World Cup final against England.
Meanwhile, reports suggest Ben Earl and Max Malins will be loaned out to Bristol Bears for the year in moves that will see them return to Saracens in the 2021/22 season.
WATCH: Jim Hamilton looks back on what has been one of the most bizarre seasons in rugby history.
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Skelton may be brought back for the Wallabies so that would be the only reason that may hinder Wilson. Easily the form, most skilful and game IQ of any Oz 8. Valentini’s best and favourite position is 6, but lineouts may be an issue with Skelton, Valentini and Wilson. Will be interesting what Schmidt goes for but for me Wilson should be picked on form. Schmidt rewards work rate, skill and consistency. All that glitters every so often won’t be in contention. Greely is one of those players that has a knack of making the right decision. A coach is going to love him because he knows week in week out he’s going to get the job done. The second try Greely wasn’t the guy who made the initial break it was Flook, Greely was at the bottom of the ruck when Flook was off along the sideline. Greely got up and made the effort to catch up with play but also read the play nicely and hit the pass from Campbell at pace and then held the pass beautifully to Ryan.
Go to commentsSharks deserved to be far further back by the last quarter. Their tackling was awful, their set pieces were disappointing, their defensive organization was poor (especially on the Kok side of the D line), they kept making unnecessary errors, and they never looked like cracking the Clermont defense during those first 60m. Masuku kept them in touch, with some help from the Clermont generosity on penalty opportunities. Agree with the writer of this article. It was belligerence, and ability to raise their pressure game just enough, that turned the last quarter into a Bok-style shutout. Clermont have a reputation of not playing the full 80m, and there was a bit of that for sure. But, quite often when the intensity of a team drops off in the last quarter credit is due to the opponent for tiring them out. At 60m, with the Kok try, you thought that just maybe the game was on. At 70m, with the Mapimpi contribution, one felt that Clermont were fading, while facing a team that would maintain the pressure game through the final whistle. Good win in the end, but the Sharks are still playing way below their potential. And with their resources, and a coach that has had enough time to figure things out, they are running out of excuses.
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