Exodus

@sparky Great news, ABs average height up by 2.5cm!

@sparky Surely we now go with Ardie 7 Cane 6 for the RWC? None of the Highlanders WTG have made the cut at blindside..

@sparky Assuming Luatua saw the light as well, he was never serious (really?) about committing to NZR / Blues / coming back to NZ for RWC. At least he has made his choice now.

Chris Boyd is trying to sign Ryan Crotty and Matt Proctor for Northampton:

Not really Exodus, but Malakai Fekitoa is set to join his mate Lima Sopoaga at Wasps:

It's out of thread but I'd like to inform that Luke Braid is leaving Bordeaux and is coming back to NZ for personal reasons.

So Crotty maybe not to Northampton, Read not off to France...the pre-RWC rumour mill in full swing

Also

The All Blacks have traditionally lost senior players after Rugby World Cup campaigns, but the moves to Japan represent a new trend.

Not sure it is so much a new trend, just another option now.

So he wants to be a 'trailblazer' to ruin what got him there in the first place?

Been a few articles with Pitutau & Sopoaga all but promoting leaving NZ for the $$$...almost like they are trying to justify it to someone?

To some, the black jersey doesnt mean as much to others, good for them if it doesnt, but it gave them a big step up in salary.

@taniwharugby I'm really starting to dislike Piutau. He shattered his own RWC dream to take the money and that's his choice, no need to try and convince others to do the same and as you rightly say being an 'AB' has certainly helped him earn the big bucks in Europe.

@taniwharugby wow, he said you could earn more money overseas.
That'll be a new and interesting fact for all rugby players in NZ!

@Siam not just rugby I expect!

The articles wrong anyway. It says

Not selected for RWC => headed overseas

When in fact

Said heading overseas => not selected for RWC

Yeah, nah.

So if Piatau pledges his undying loyalty to NZ Rugby in 2015 and reups he gets picked for the World Cup squad? Ask Jane and Dagg who did just that, were in the frame and missed out.

The selectors were so locked in on Naholo that they picked him with a broken leg with perfectly good, experienced options available. I don't think there is anyway we can say Piatau would have been picked when they had such a hard on for Waisake that year.

Even if picked there is no guarantee they would have seen him as a winger which would mean his "world cup dream" would have been keeping Malakai Fekitoa and Colin Slade company in the stands and having a hit out against Namibia.

Piutau definitely makes the World Cup squad if he had signed on past the RWC. The way they justified Naholo was basically saying "if we are choosing between two players who are close and one is staying and one is going then we select the one who is staying". If Piutau was staying they would have picked him - NZRU made him a multi year offer and iirc he made every AB squad from his debut in 2013 up until the RWC squad in 2015. He also provided more versatility than Naholo with the ability to cover fullback - not to mention he'd played 17 tests vs what 1 test Naholo had prior to RWC 2015?

I'm intrigued as to how he's making his name. I never hear anything about him. Interesting how he's a trailblazer...doing pretty much exactly what Evans did - except Evans was much more successful and popular.