Wilkinson heads for France

Tuesday 19 May 2009 00:00 BST

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Jonny Wilkinson, no more than an occasional rugby player these days but still the most lionised member of England's World Cup-winning team, last night ended his 12-year stay at Newcastle in favour of a two-season deal with Toulon, the French Top 14 club financed by spectacularly wealthy businessman Mourad Boudjellal.

Wilkinson, still recovering from a knee dislocation suffered last September, will earn around £750,000 a year playing alongside nine fellow recruits from Premiership and Celtic League sides.

The likes of Sale pair Sébastien Bruno and Juan Martin Fernandez Lobbe, Munster prop Tim Ryan, Bristol flanker Joe El-Abd, Saracens back-rower Kris Chesney and Cardiff centre Jamie Robinson have already been signed up.

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Wilkinson heads for France

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