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Saracens' takeover by consortium including Francois Pienaar completed
By PA
Saracens’ £32million takeover by a consortium including World Cup-winning captain Francois Pienaar has been completed.
The Gallagher Premiership club announced the takeover in October with Saracens owner Nigel Wray agreeing to sell his controlling stake in the club.
A club statement said on Wednesday: “The board of Saracens Group Holdings Limited is pleased to announce the completion of the previously announced transaction regarding the refinancing of the group and the acquisition of a controlling stake in the group by Kimono House Limited.
“This follows the receipt of the various approvals required (including from the RFU, PRL and the London Borough of Barnet).
“The group includes Saracens Rugby Club, Saracens Mavericks Limited (the owner of the Saracens Mavericks netball team), and Saracens Copthall LLP (the owner of the StoneX Stadium).
“Kimono House is owned by a consortium of investors including Dominic Silvester, Neil Golding, Nick Leslau, Paul O’Shea, Francois Pienaar and Marco Masotti.”
Pienaar led the Springboks to victory at the 1995 World Cup on home soil, famously receiving the trophy from South Africa president Nelson Mandela.
The former flanker made 44 appearances as a player-coach for Saracens between 2000 and 2002.
Wray, who first invested in the club in 1995 and took full ownership in 2018, has been looking to reduce his stake for some time.
Five-time champions Saracens returned to the Gallagher Premiership for the start of the 2021-22 season after a year in exile.
The London club were relegated in 2020 as a result of salary cap breaches, but managed to retain the services of England stars Owen Farrell, Maro Itoje, Mako and Billy Vunipola and Elliot Daly.
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Let’s blame a Chief instead ! 😀
Cane didn’t start in Yokohama but 5 Crusader forwards did and got their tails kicked by the John Mitchell coached England forwards. Well done Hansen!
Go to commentsI don’t really share Johnson’s opinion. Nothing better than Tupaea and Lienert-Brown in NZ? It’s a good duo, and he wouldn’t look out of place, but I think we can do better. Tavatavanawai seems superior to Tupaea at 12. He’s a brute force, who makes few mistakes (which can still be criticized in Tupaea), formidable both with and without the ball in close contact. I can see him playing with Proctor. On paper, this combination would be very, very interesting, in the same philosophy as the iconic Nonu/C Smith duo.
Anyway, I remain convinced that in Razor’s mind, Jordie Barrett is indispensable at center, and he could quickly team up with Leicester Fainga’anuku. I’m betting on that in the near future.
However, a Tavatanawai/Proctor duo would be very interesting. Ennor also seems to be a good option instead of Proctor, who still hasn’t played this season. But Ennor has only played one match... he needs to be seen again and get some game time. There is a lot of talent in New Zealand in these two positions. The hardest part will be cutting players who could make a difference for many teams. The choices are going to be tough. If I had to make a bold bet, and unlike Johnson, I don’t see Tupaea being selected, and I imagine ALB could be in a tight spot against Proctor and Ennor if they are fit.
I imagine Jordie, Havili, Rieko, and Fainga'anuku with Tavatavanawai. Ennor or Proctor if Fainga'anuku is not selected in July. And ALB if Jordie is rested
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