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Steffon Armitage will not be joining the San Diego Legion after all. The England international and former European Player of the Year has this week arrived in Biarritz, where he has signed a two-year contract through the end of the 2020-2021 season. In July he signed a Major League Rugby contract but that has now been cancelled.
The reason for the cancellation stems from a recent conviction for sexual assault in France. Armitage was handed a six-month suspended sentence for groping a woman outside a bar in Pau. He was therefore unable to obtain a visa to enter the USA but it was a moot point as the Legion formally terminated the agreement, their official statement can be read below.
“The San Diego Legion, a Major League Rugby franchise, has released Steffon Armitage due to his criminal conviction in France. In doing so, the Legion stated that Armitage’s conduct does not reflect the values of the Legion and therefore, the team is going to go in a different direction for the 2020 season.”
San Diego have since moved to sign All Blacks star Ma’a Nonu and it’s unclear if they will look to bring in a new loose forward to replace Armitage. Meanwhile No8 Jordan Manihera has returned to New Zealand where he recently purchased a house near Auckland where he is now working for a recruitment firm.
