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Bret Harris | May 26, 2009
Article from: The Australian
WALLABIES blindside flanker Rocky Elsom is poised to sign with the Brumbies for next year's Super 14 series, after rejecting offers from the NSW Waratahs and Queensland Reds.
Elsom, who was man-of-the-match in Irish province Leinster's 19-16 win against English club Leicester in the Heineken Cup final in Edinburgh last Saturday, is believed to have agreed to terms with the ARU for a return to Australia.
He will arrive in Sydney next week to play for the Barbarians against the Wallabies on June 6 and once he has signed an ARU contract, he will be eligible for Australia's upcoming Tests against Italy and France.
It is understood Elsom recently initiated contact with the Brumbies, a team that seems to be on the rise again under coach Andy Friend, after deciding against playing for the Waratahs or the Reds.
Brumbies hooker Stephen Moore is a close friend of Elsom, while the recruitment of inside backs Matt Giteau and Josh Valentine - and possibly James O'Connor - from the Western Force would have convinced him the ACT side should be highly competitive.
With Elsom on the side of the scrum, the Brumbies will certainly be a formidable power in Super 14 again.
The Brumbies, however, played down their chances of securing Elsom.
"We are long shots," Brumbies chief executive Andrew Fagan said. "I'm sure it will begin to take shape over coming days."
At one point Elsom had indicated that he was leaning towards returning to Queensland, where he attended Nudgee College in Brisbane.
But it is understood Elsom was unhappy with the Reds' lack of recruitment for next season and had second thoughts about going to Queensland, which was also dragging the chain on the negotiations.
The Reds, who finished second last on the Super 14 table, have missed out on Wallabies fullback/winger Drew Mitchell and number eight Richard Brown, who are both Queenslanders.
The decision by Wallabies back-five forward Hugh McMeniman to pursue his career in Japan, coupled with the uncertainty over winger Digby Ioane's future, would not have given Elsom confidence that the Reds were heading in the right direction.
"I'm sure anyone of his standing and intellect would be looking at how the team's served moving forward," Reds high performance manager Ben Whitaker conceded.
"The squad list right now and going into the future is an important aspect."
The Waratahs, with whom Elsom played for six years before joining Leinster, are still hoping he will return to Sydney.
Waratahs chief executive Jim L'Estrange said he would meet Elsom when he arrived in Sydney next week for the Barbarians game.
"We are still hanging in there," L'Estrange said. "We'll have an opportunity to talk to Rocky when he comes back.
"We'd rather talk to him face to face than over the telephone.
"Phil Waugh (Waratahs captain) is also over there (London) playing with Rocky for the Barbarians against England. I'm sure they will have a beer and a chat."
Unfortunately, for the Waratahs an announcement on Elsom joining the Brumbies will probably be made before he arrives in Sydney.
ARU high performance manager David Nucifora refused to confirm that Elsom had agreed to terms, but he remained confident he would return despite an upgraded offer from Leinster, which is desperate to keep him, especially after his outstanding performance in the Heineken Cup final.
"Until these boys decide to put pen to paper, you never really know," Nucifora said.
"We have been working on it for a long time and I have been quite confident for a while because I am confident he wants to come back and be a part of Australian rugby."
Meanwhile, former Wallabies halfback Chris Whitaker is returning home to Sydney to play for the Barbarians against the Wallabies.
Whitaker, who played alongside Elsom in Leinster's win against Leicester, has been called into the Barbarians squad following the withdrawal of French halfback Dmitri Yachvili.
It will be Whitaker's first game on Australian soil since leaving for Dublin at the end of the 2006 Super 14 season.
He will also play for the Barbarians against England at Twickenham this Saturday.
Additional reporting: AAP
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au...015651,00.html
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