 Magnus Lund gets to grips with France and Toulouse's Thierry Dusautoir
With the Wasps trio of Riki Flutey, James Haskell and Tom Palmer set to head across the Channel next season, the Rugby Football Union is worried about the travel bug spreading further among the England squad. Former Sale and England flanker Magnus Lund has already made it through quarantine and the 25-year-old, who replaced French great Serge Betsen at Biarritz last summer, has no regrets at ending his seven-year spell at the Sharks in favour of France's Atlantic coast. "I had pretty much decided that I needed to get away from Sale. I grew up not far away from Manchester and had been around there all my life. I felt I had perhaps got a little stale and needed something fresh," he told BBC Sport. "It seemed like a great challenge to come out here and try and prove myself in the French league and improve myself as a player and as a person."  Lund (far right) scored a try in Sale's 45-20 Premiership final win against Leicester in 2006 |
Biarritz, with big waves breaking on a picture postcard beach, is one of the most glamorous towns in France. As Lund admits, it was different to being put through his paces in the north-west. "I arrived at the end of July and it was straight into the holiday season. It was unbelievable, the town was packed and we were pre-season training in the sunshine, it was phenomenal," he said. "There are plenty of foreigners and the French guys have been great and made it very easy for me to be part of the squad. "The big thing in France is everyone eating together. They like to be together and feel that that helps on the pitch. "We have a big lunchtime meal and it's good to experience how those things work out here."  | There are undoubtedly players here for the money Magnus Lund on life in the Top 14 |
But the move has not been without its more unpleasant culture shocks. "Certainly there is a difference in terms of personal discipline. When you're playing there seem to be a lot more cheap shots out here," he said. "In England everyone seems to concentrate on getting their own job done and working for the team, whereas here they do seem to take out their personal vendettas a little more. "There's no question that it's a really tough game and they have got the mentality of 'one in, all in' if anything happens." In joining Biarritz, the open-side landed at one of the powerhouses of French rugby. The Basque side won the domestic title in 2002, 2005 and 2006, losing in the final of the Heineken Cup in the last of those seasons, but this year sees them struggling to secure European qualification as they currently lie seventh in the Top 14.  Lund made his Sale debut against Bristol in 2002 |
They also went out of the Heineken Cup at the group stages, part of a disappointing showing from French sides - only Toulouse made the quarter-finals - that prompted the Midi-Olympique newspaper to dub them the "Flop 14". Lund, who has started 14 of Biarritz's league games in an injury-affected debut season, concedes that it has been an underwhelming year on the pitch. "Our fortunes have been up and down, the coach got sacked about halfway through the season and unfortunately it's not been as good results-wise as I would have hoped," he said. "If you look at past European results then obviously you would think it was a blip. There are some very strong French sides that didn't make it through and you've got to wonder why. | 606: DEBATE |
"The standard of the English league and the Celtic League is ridiculously high. Hopefully that might make the French sides step it up again next year and realise they have to take every game as importantly as they can." Free from the salary cap that restricts Premiership clubs, French Top 14 sides are able to reward foreign players handsomely. But with RFU chief Francis Baron warning England's stars that they may leave their international places behind if they leave the country, some have accused the exports of putting cash ahead of caps. "There are undoubtedly players here for the money," said Lund. "But I don't think that just happens in France. There are probably a lot of players who have moved in England just for the money as well. You can't say that's totally the reason why players come out here."  Lund crosses in 2007's 42-20 win over Scotland |
After making his debut against Australia in 2006, Lund appeared in each of England's Six Nations games the following year and scored his first international try in the Calcutta Cup victory over Scotland before being surprisingly omitted from Brian Ashton's squad for the 2007 World Cup. Although downbeat about his own chances of a recall he believes playing abroad should not bar anyone from representing their country, although he admits selection is "for those people in those positions to decide". "I hadn't been playing for England in the Six Nations last year, so me moving out here probably isn't as big a deal as James Haskell. But if guys are moving away and big teams like Stade Francais are interested in them, it shows what strength there is," he said. "If they've got players playing well in England, then pick those players. But if there are guys like Andy Goode at Brive, then he should get his shot," said Lund. "If England want to do the best they can, they should pick the best players." Former Leicester fly-half Goode started England's first two Six Nations matches this season. But with French rugby awash with cash, the likes of Haskell and Flutey are unlikely to be the last England players invited to cross the Channel. That means it will be interesting summer as both players and the RFU work out their responses to the French connection.
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