ROME — Wales head coach Warren Gatland has stated he would welcome again Louis Rees-Zammit with open arms however stated he has had no contact with the previous rugby union participant and expects him to remain in America and proceed making an attempt to realize his dream of enjoying within the NFL.
Rees-Zammit stepped away from rugby forward of final 12 months’s Six Nations to hitch the NFL’s Worldwide Participant Pathway (IPP) — a scheme which helps elite athletes transition to the NFL and provides them a platform to win a contract with one of many franchises. Rees-Zammit signed with the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs as a operating again by the Chiefs on a three-year deal final March however was waived by them in August. He then signed to the Jacksonville Jaguars’ observe squad however his deal there has expired.
Gatland expects Rees-Zammit to remain in America with widespread studies suggesting Rees-Zammit has a brand new contract supply on the desk from the Jaguars. Regardless of the uncertainty over his future, Gatland says he has not obtained any phrase from Rees-Zammit over his subsequent steps and does not count on the previous winger to return to the game any time quickly.
“We’d like to have him again if he was out there to us,” Gatland stated. “We’re simply ready to see what occurs. My understanding is he has an method when it comes to being retained by Jacksonville. I do not learn about that. At any time when he desires to return again, he’d be greater than welcome again within the fold.
“He is solely been away for 12 months. It is about seeing what occurs when it comes to what selections are made within the U.S. He’d be greater than welcome again into the fold. Whenever you make such an enormous determination when it comes to making an attempt to observe your desires, is 12 months sufficient to say you’ve got tried? I do not know what the reply to that’s. There are a whole lot of tales about him on the market. I proceed to want him all one of the best. I would be more than pleased to welcome him again with open arms.”
Gatland believes Rees-Zammit might be benefiting massively from the expertise.
“It is provided a unique perspective on what a unique sport does,” Gatland stated. “He is stated himself issues are brutal there; American sport is brutal. You get a textual content or a name to show up together with your stuff and goodbye you are gone. Gamers are traded, they get that decision saying sorry you’ve got been traded to a different staff. There is no dialogue, no debate. From a development standpoint, that can give him a unique perspective.
“I have never received sufficient expertise or data to touch upon whether or not he is adequate to play it, I simply know that if he does determine to return again, then there will be a spot for him.”
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