Gloucester they are desperate to bond England center Seb Atkinson after becoming the center of the stretch between Leicester Tigers and Harlequins, both keen to sign him.
The Tigers believe Atkinson, 24, who won seven England caps, could address one of their team’s problem areas at inside center next season, and are prepared to battle Quins to land him if talks with the Cherry and Whites continue to drag on.
Atkinson, who began his career in Worcester The Warriors, who joined Gloucester in 2022, won the PREM Rugby Cup two years later and is believed to be keen on moving to London, where his girlfriend Siena works for Goldman Sachs.
The center currently holds the record for the rugby grueling Bronco Fitness Test, with a time of 4 minutes and 8 seconds.
Edinburgh are set for reinforcements as highly-rated Scotland-capped winger Malelili Satala agrees terms on a new deal despite interest from Gallagher PREM and Japan.
Bristol The Bears were interested in the former Leicester Tigers and Nottingham man, who was born in the Scottish capital while his father played for the club and served in the 1st Battalion of the Royal Scots Regiment.
Edinburgh wanted to make a deal with Satala because Scotland and Lions ace Duhan Van der Merwe could be on his way Japan or France, with whom he spent time Montpellier at the beginning of his career.
Henry Pollock’s profile continues to skyrocket, and he will be the cover star of two major magazines hitting the shelves next week: Men’s Health and high-society publication Tatler.
Pollock will appear on the cover alongside Valentina Pinault, daughter of one of Hollywood’s most powerful and influential actresses, Salma Hayek, after she was named one of the UK’s 200 most eligible bachelors.
The magazine, which was first published in 1709, is entitled Northampton Saints and England star and London student Pinault as “The ‘It’ Girl Student and the English Star”.
Springbok prostitute Malcolm Marx is in the middle of a tug-of-war Bulls and the Sharks, who joined the race to lure him back to the United Rugby Championship when his contract with Kubota Spears ends next June.
RugbyPass reported in August that Marks, 32, a member of Rassie Erasmus’ back-to-back World Cup-winning Springbok squad, was being courted by Bulls boss Johan Akerman, who gave him his Lions debut.
But Sharks are doing the rounds and have also made a very strong bid to give Marx plenty of food for thought as he seeks to end his six-year stay in Japan.
Toulouse have been sent back to the drawing board after a bid to sign Tongan international lock Jimmy Tupou failed when he failed a medical earlier this week.
The Top 14 the champions are looking for new recruits after long-term injuries ruled out Clément Vergé (knee), Emmanuel Meafou (knee) and Thibaud Flament (shoulder) and were keen to bring in Tupou, who also plays in the back row.
Tupou, 34, who played for the Crusaders, Blues, Chiefs, Pacific Ocean and Urayasu D-Rocks in Japan, he was there to win the Champions Cup in Toulouse Exeter Chiefs last week before a doctor discovered an unspecified problem.
Saracens they want to keep Alfie Barbeary in north London beyond the end of the season, but he is already attracting interest across the Channel and could move to the Top 14 when his one-year contract expires.
Barbeary, 26, has made four appearances for Sarries this season after moving from Bath and was a target of French clubs Union Bordeaux Bègles and La Rochelle in the past but stayed at Gallagher PREM to fight for a place in Steve Borthwick’s England squad.
Ex Wasps The number 8, who has won England Under-20 and A honours, could opt to follow Tom Willis and try his luck in France if he can’t force his way into Borthwick’s plans this season.
Former England inside center Manu Tuilagi is set to be offered a one-year deal to stay Bayonne next season, but the club is still interested in signing someone as a backup.
Tuilagi, 35, has been linked with a return to Gallagher PREM, a stay in France or even a move to a club in Japan, where he has long been mooted for a move.
He has made four appearances for Bayonne this season and is expected to give some indication of his future in the next few weeks.
Leeds-born Felix Balshaw, son of England’s World Cup winner Iain, is a rising French tennis star who celebrated his first ATP Tour title in Lyon last week.
He should be in the top 180 in the world, as he started the 2026 season ranked 718th. He moved to France when he was nine after 2003 World Cup winner Iain joined the exodus and signed for Biarritz, and admits he feels more French than English.
“I grew up in France and, as each day passed, I felt more and more French. From a young age, since I started playing for Tennis Europe juniors, I always carried the French flag after my name,” he told the BBC.
