Spencer sets sights on Northampton future

Disillusioned five-eighths Carlos Spencer will sign for Northampton if he can reach a deal about his financial release from New Zealand.

While most would expect Spencer to save his departure until the end of the Lions tour, it seems he wants to move once the Super 12 series is over.

The main sticking points though appear to be the size of transfer fees demanded by the New Zealand Rugby Union and Auckland for the balance of his contracts to the end of next year.

NZRFU deputy Steve Tew said the union was "in the loop" about Spencer's plans after talks with his manager David Jones. "We don't talk specifics about any players, but we have principles for contracted players who may want to break any deal.

"It would be unusual for us not to get some compensation because we have entered into a commercial arrangement. Players' remuneration can be affected by the length of their commitment."

Talks about those issues intensified before the injured Spencer and his manager flew to England for talks with Northampton this weekend. If Spencer agrees to terms, his exit would bring to almost 30 the number of All Blacks who have left in the past five years on overseas contracts .

The catalyst for Spencer's probable shift came when the Blues dropped him after their heavy loss to the Crusaders. Almost immediately, Spencer fielded offers from several English clubs while several of his former team-mates encouraged the long-serving five-eighths to take his talents overseas.

Their advice came after a 2004 All Blacks season where Spencer was overlooked for the last Tri-Nations test and the end-of-year tour to Europe.

Spencer knew he was behind Daniel Carter and probably Andrew Mehrtens in the battle for first five-eighths selection against the Lions, and when he was axed from the Blues his displeasure intensified.

Inquiries from Northampton fired his interest. There, he would team with New Zealanders Andrew Blowers, Bruce Reihana and Mark Robinson.

The broken cheekbone Spencer suffered in Blues training allowed him to make a rapid trip to Northampton once he received a medical clearance this week to travel.

Meanwhile, Mehrtens is likely to wait until the Lions series is over to decide on his possible switch to the Harlequins.

Much has been rumoured of Dean Richards signing Mehrtens, but Richards is still trying to get out of his contract at Grenoble to sign as the rugby director at Harlequins.

Mehrtens, like his provincial and Super 12 halfback Justin Marshall, who is shifting to Leeds, is likely to have insisted that his transfer would depend on Harlequins staying in Division One.

Other recent All Blacks such as Reuben Thorne and Xavier Rush are said to be considering moves to clubs in Europe, but have postponed those decisions until they discover their All Black squad selection fate.

One player who has reversed the exodus trend is hooker Anton Oliver. He has rejected offers from Europe to concentrate on the Lions series and, he hopes, an end-of-year grand slam tour with the All Blacks.

Oliver's test career appeared to be finished until he was recalled in November for the trip to Europe and finished as the preferred hooker. That trip reinvigorated the 43-test veteran.

"I've got teams that are interested in me overseas," the 29-year-old said, "but the little sojourn to Europe last year, and now us winning games and me starting to play a bit better ... it's awoken something inside me that has been dormant for some time."