latest news
Mehrtens' final fling
Not done yet: Andrew Mehrtens
Former All Black points-scoring machine Andrew Mehrtens has signed a one year contract with French Pro D2 club Racing Métro 92, as he sets himself one final challenge: win promotion for the Parisian side just like he did for Toulon last season.
Mehrtens, one of the most celebrated fly-halve's in New Zealand rugby history is not ready to leave France. At 35 years of age Mehrtens was prepared to continue playing in the axis role for newly promoted Toulon, under former team-mate Tana Umaga.
But the club from the South coast preferred to invest their Top 14 hopes in Sébastien Fauqué, Ramiro Pez and Damien Vidal.
The former All Blacks legend will have one mission: guide his new club into the top flight of French rugby in same fashion he used his wealth of experience to help Toulon make the step up - just as he did for Harlequins in England.
If millionaire club-owner Mourad Boudjellal wasn't prepared to offer Mehrtens a new contract, Racing Métro 92 didn't waste any time in procuring his services. The Parisian club, who disappointingly missed out on promotion, despite finishing second in the ProD2 league last season (they last to Mont-de -Marsan in the promotion playoffs), have invested heavily in their half-backs and Mehrtens will be paired with former Stade Français scrum-half Jérôme Fillol.
Fillol himself has a fine pedigree having won the France championship twice, in 2001 and 2003, with Paris's more famous club.
Born in Durban in South Africa in 1973, Mehrtens followed in the footsteps of his father and grandfather to represent New Zealand and became an All Blacks icon in the 1990s. In a nine-year international career, he went on to win 70 caps and set a new point-scoring record, 967.
After winning five Super rugby titles with the Crusaders and mentoring current All Blacks fly-half Dan Carter, Mehrtens moved to England and Harlequins.
All that experience will not only be put to use on the field but also in guiding young fly-halves Jeff Dubois and Jonathan Wisniewski on to bigger and better things. They'll have a role model second to none.
