Owen Farrell once again linked with move away from rugby union

For quite some time, there have been associations between Farrell and a potential move to his hometown club, Wigan Warriors.

Speaking to the Mirror back in May, Farrell said: "I always wonder if I could do it, if I’d be any good. I love the game, I love watching Wigan, and I’m obsessed with the NRL. I watch as much as I can.

"Until I moved down south, until there was talk of my dad moving to rugby union, I didn't know what rugby union was. Like, I'd see the England games sometimes and see the World Cup, and I’d see some Six Nations, but I weren’t really into it, if I’m honest."

However, The Telegraph seems to have put an end to these speculations by reporting that England head coach Steve Borthwick is eager to have Farrell serve as the emblematic figure for the rugby union nation in the four years leading to the upcoming World Cup.

The Telegraph said: "The standard-bearer for the next four-year cycle is most likely to be Owen Farrell. Whether the Saracens fly-half retains the captaincy all the way to the World Cup in Australia in 2027 remains to be seen.

"But given the physical conditioning of the 32-year-old, and the way he looks after his body, it is thought that Borthwick believes Farrell will play a key role in the next cycle, similar fashion to that leadership and game management influence that Johnny Sexton delivered for Ireland over the last four years."

While the passage doesn't outright confirm Farrell's future, it represents the most significant clue to date that he may continue his career in the 15-man version of the sport.

Former England lock Attwood has opened up on the latest RugbyPass Offload about his ongoing rivalry with Owen Farrell.

He revealed: "On the pitch, I struggle a lot with Owen Farrell. We just don’t see eye to eye on a lot of things,

“He hates me with a passion. Despite my earthy roots, he thinks I am a posh c***. He hates that. I bagged rugby league once jovially. I was saying it to take the piss kind of thing, ‘a bloody sport for the peasants’. He f**kin’ hated it."

He made 157 appearances in Blue, Black and White over an eight-year period during his first spell at Bath before returning in 2022

His debut came against Newcastle Falcons at the beginning of the 2011/12 season after arriving from Gloucester, scoring four tries in his first campaign

The lock quickly established himself as a key player in the Bath pack and excelled at international level too, with 22 of his 24 England caps coming whilst at the Re

The former England international has also played for Bristol (twice), Gloucester and Toulon during his established career

The Scotland back-rower was the instigator in some tunnel argy-bargy when the players returned to the changing rooms after the warm-up back in 2018 with Farrell at the centre.

Footage of the incident shows all hell breaking loose when Farrell barged his way past a number of Scotland players to confront Wilson, who had been attempting to get inside the head of George Ford.

Wilson later revealed he was banned from Twickenham following the incident.

“I remember that game, I was actually injured and after tunnel-gate, after everything that happened in the tunnel against England, I’d lined up a corporate gig at Twickenham,” he recalled to Rugby Pass in November.

“Had it all lined up, a little bit of cash, all excited, only to get a message back saying the RFU have banned you from Twickenham Stadium after everything that happened the year before.

The pair have what we can only describe as a love-hate relationship. As legendary as the 'best mates' videos were during the 2016 tour of Australia, Farrell certainly didn't seem to be enjoying it.

Farrell and De Klerk ended up at arm’s length from each other in 2018 during their summer tour just before the 20-minute mark and the rest of the two sides quickly joined in.

The pair have since clashes on multiple occasions, including during the World Cup final a year later. Klerk is clearly someone who gets under the England skippers skin and their appears to be little love lost between the pair.

Speaking about the pair, Tom Curry said they are 'very different characters'.