Leeds Rhinos legend Kevin Sinfield has been linked with a shocking move to Harlequins ahead of his exit from England Rugby Union.
Sinfield left Leeds Rhinos in 2021 when he joined Leicester Tigers. He and Steve Borthwick guided the Tigers to the title in 2022 and on the back of this, the duo were snapped up by England.
They were involved as England reached the semi-finals of the World Cup but after the defeat to South Africa, Sinfield received plenty of blame as the Leeds legend was linked with an exit and it soon led to his departure which will come later this year.
After speculation he could return to rugby league, Sinfield has now been lined up as a potential Defence Coach at Harlequins.
The Times Reported: “Harlequins are interested in speaking to Kevin Sinfield about joining them as a coach when he leaves his England role, as they prepare to lose Jerry Flannery to the Springboks.
“It is understood that Flannery, the 45-year-old former Ireland hooker, is set to leave Quins mid-season and join South Africa — reuniting with the former Munster coach Rassie Erasmus. He has been lined up as the Springboks’ next defence coach, replacing his great friend Felix Jones, who now coaches England, having helped South Africa to win back-to-back World Cups.
“It is believed that Flannery will leave Harlequins in the coming weeks, with his last match likely to be the friendly against Munster on February 23.
“South Africa want Flannery to start soon, alongside their new attack coach, Tony Brown, the New Zealander who has coached Japan, so they can hit the ground running in the summer. The Boks are looking to play a standalone Test against Wales at Twickenham in June, and have confirmed home matches against Portugal and Ireland, twice, in July. The Rugby Championship starts in August.”
Kevin Sinfield will not return to rugby league
England v Fiji, Twickenham, UK – 26 Aug 2023 Kevin Sinfield, defence coach of England Rugby during the Summer international match, Länderspiel, Nationalmannschaft between England and Fiji at Twickenham Stadium on August 26, 2023 in London, England.
Sinfield recently confirmed he wouldn’t be returning to rugby league in an interview with the Telegraph: “I think it’s very unlikely I’ll go back into rugby league, but I’ll never say no.
“I don’t ever feel like I really left rugby league because of my role with Rugby League Cares, the charitable arm of the sport. What I do know is I want to continue to support and help people.”
“When what happened with Rob [Burrow] happened it was a big shift in my life, and it felt right to use my experience as a player to help me support players and other people. I try and use that in the best way moving forward. I won’t rule out anything at this stage, as I think I’d be daft to.”
