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Gallagher-Prime Minister
Sale Sharks Boss Alex Sanderson admits he has managed to get his in-form flanker Christ Tshiunza on the plane for the World Cup in Australia next year priority.
Tshiunza, 24, has been in fine form for the Sharks since joining from Exeter Chiefs but was ruled ineligible to play for his country in the summer as he is 10 games short of the 25-game minimum to play outside of Wales.
He fell victim to a little-known loophole in the rules, which excludes him from selection after he was deemed to have rejected reasonable offers Ospreys and Cardiff to sign a one-year contract with the Manchester team.
Sanderson said he had spoken to Tshiunza, who won the last 15 games in a 12-45 loss to the Springboks in November 2024, about staying with the Sharks beyond the end of the season.
He says Steve Tandy may pick Tshiunza if none of the four Welsh regions can match the Sharks’ offer, which has previously benefited Rhys Carre and Jarrod Evans.
“I haven’t spoken to Steve Tandy, but we’re definitely consulting on how to get him back in Wales the national team and playing in the World Cup is probably at the top of our agenda for Chris because he’s doing some good things for us, isn’t he?
“He wants and wants to play in the World Cup. He wants to play for Wales. And that will motivate him in whatever decision he makes going forward, but we’ve made it clear and obvious: we’d like him to stay.”
“The only thing that takes it away from Wales is what price range we go in. If the price range is above what they can match, then you can play for Wales and you’ll get a lot of money here.
“But the question is whether that price level is something we can fit into our salary cap. That’s what we’re working on right now,” Sanderson said RugbyPass.
