Sale Sharks have confirmed 15 players will leave the club at the end of the season, with a further five making an immediate exit as the PREM outfit ramp up their squad overhaul.
Among the list of departing players, Raffi Quirke, James Harper, Obi Ene and Dan and Rob du Preez had already been confirmed, with a further 10 players now set to follow them through the exit door.
Their list of exiting players comes with the Sharks also announcing 12 new signings ahead of next season, with the likes of Joe Marchant, Courtney Lawes, Tomas Francis, Nicky Smith and Christ Tshiunza all heading to the CorpAcq.
Sale Sharks confirm 20 player exits as Springbok and England stars leave PREM side
The headline exits are, of course, those of the Springbok-capped Du Preez brothers and England international Quirke. Centre Rob will join brother Jean-Luc, also a former Shark, in the Top 14 next season after signing for Bayonne, while back-rower Dan and Quirke will head to PREM rivals Bath and Newcastle respectively.
Quirke will also be joined by the aforementioned Harper and Ene at Kingston Park, with the pair also agreeing moves to the Red Bulls.
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Elsewhere, Tumy Onasanya, WillGriff John, Hyron Andrews, Nye Thomas, Tom Curtis, Joe Bedlow, Huw Davies, Albert Bradshaw, Tom Davis and Frank Chatterton will also leave at the end of the season, while Tadgh McElroy, Sam Bedlow, Rouban Birch, Will Wootton and Jack Lightbown have departed with immediate effect.
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Gurshwin Wehr and Regan Grace also departed the CorpAcq back in January following the end of their short-term deals.
Commenting on the departing players, Sale director of rugby, Alex Sanderson, said: “It’s been a year of transition and a year of change and a year that I know we’ll be the better for going forward. But that’s on the back of the efforts and the contributions of the friends who are leaving us and have already left.
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‘We’ll miss them all’
“We’ve got lads who are Sale through and through, who have come through the Academy to become first-teamers, like Raffi and James Harper; a club legend like Rob who is a future hall of famer; and younger lads like Huw, Frank and Albert who haven’t played as much as they’d have hoped.
“To a man, everyone has invested themselves into the club and whether they’ve played two games or 200, everyone at the club is so grateful for their contributions, for putting their trust in us and for their friendships, which I have no doubt will continue past the end of this season.
“They’ve all been a part of this special group and they’ve all come together in the good times and when it’s been tough. We’ll miss them all.”
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