WELLINGTON (AFP) – Welsh back Lee Halfpenny is set to join Super Rugby Pacific champions Canterbury Crusaders for the 2024 season, a source close to the Christchurch-based club told AFP on Thursday.
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The contract for Halfpenny, who can play at fullback or on the wing, is expected to be announced in the next few days by the New Zealand club, who will be chasing an eighth consecutive Super Rugby title when the new season begins in February.
Halfpenny, 34, announced his retirement from international rugby last week and will play his final game for Wales against the Barbarians in Cardiff on Saturday.
Since making his international debut in 2008, he has scored 801 points for Wales, including 15 tries.
He won the Six Nations Championship four times with Wales, including the Grand Slam in 2012 and 2019.
The former Scarlets again won his 101st Wales cap against Portugal at last month’s Rugby World Cup, before Wales crashed out of the competition in the quarter-finals.
Halfpenny was selected for all three British and Irish Lions tours, winning four caps and scoring 49 points. He started all three Tests in the successful 2013 tour of Australia, where he was named player of the series.
Halfpenny has been without a club since leaving Welsh regional side Scarlets at the end of last season and has been linked with a move to Japan.
© 2023 AFP