As Ulster prepare to head to France for the first game of their European Champions Cup campaign on Sunday, head coach Richie Murphy is hoping that two of his players don’t head there permanently next season.
According to reports in Midi Olympique, John Cooney and Jacob Stockdale are being lined up for big-money moves by French giants when their contracts expire at the end of the campaign.
Winger Stockdale in particular would be a significant loss for the province given his recent resurgence that has seen him called back into the Ireland squad and, at 28, he is still in his prime, while Cooney has been a reliable and experienced head in the back line since he joined in 2017.
Racing 92 and Lyon are believed to be chasing Stockdale, who has played his entire career for Ulster, while Bordeaux-Begles, who the province play next weekend in their second Champions Cup pool game, are after Cooney.
“They’ve both been brilliant players,” said Murphy, who will have neither available for Sunday’s game against Toulouse at the Stade Ernest-Wallon due to injury.
“At this time of year, with players off contract, there’s always going to be conversations about those things.
“We don’t want to see them go. It’s like anything, if people decide to move on, well, the group here will move on without them.
“We’re trying to build something here going forward over the next number of years. Hopefully, the guys might want to be a part of that.”