Alex Lozowski signs new two-year Saracens deal despite Exeter interest

Sign of intent: Alex Lozowski, in action against his former team Wasps, wants to fight for a regular place in the Saracens starting line-up
Getty Images
Chris Jones19 October 2017

Alex Lozowski, who was linked with a move to Premiership champions Exeter, has ended speculation about his future by signing a new contract that will keep him at Saracens until 2020.

Lozowski, who joined from Wasps last year, has opted for a two-year deal, despite the opportunity for regular first-team rugby in the south-west. The Chiefs were rumoured to have offered Lozowski £350,000 a season.

However, the 24-year-old, who appeared in both England Test wins over Argentina in the summer, believes that continuing to fight for a place in Sarries’ star-studded squad will improve his game and chances of further international recognition.

Lozowski, who is preparing for the club’s Champions Cup home game against Ospreys on Saturday, is viewed by both Sarries and England as a potential inside centre, although he is equally at home at fly-half — a role currently filled by Owen Farrell for both club and country. The fact that Farrell recently signed a five-year deal will have been one of the factors Lozowski had to consider but he will bid for a place in England’s 2019 World Cup squad in Japan wearing the Sarries colours.

Lozowski, whose father Rob played for England and Wasps, said: “It’s great to be part of this team and I’m delighted to have signed. I have really benefited from being in the environment and from being around good players and good coaches. I wake up in the morning and look forward to training.

“I think being surrounded by the calibre of guys that we’ve got here is only going to bring your game up.

“I am really grateful to be part of this team. There is a lot of laughter around the place every day, we try to have a good time. Then when it gets time to get down to serious business we all tune in and get on with the work. That’s a nice balance to have.”

Farrell is ahead of Lozowski in the reckoning for club and country
Getty Images

Saracens director of rugby Mark McCall said: “We’re delighted that Alex has agreed a new deal. Alex will have an important role to play for us as he continues to develop as a player.

“In his brief time at the club, Alex has already shown how good a player he is but the most exciting thing for us is how much improvement we believe there is to come from him.”

McCall will shortly sign his own contract extension as the club attempt to provide continuity. Besides Farrell, Lions hooker Jamie George and rookie England lock Nick Isiekwe have signed new contracts, while academy product Max Malins — another utility back — has also signed a new deal with the club.

McCall has made it clear to Lozowski where the club see him operating, revealing recently: “Alex understands that 12 or 13 is going to be his route internationally. That’s what [England head coach] Eddie Jones wants as well, I’m sure.”

Saracens face Ospreys on Saturday at Allianz Park, kick-off 7.45pm. Tickets available at saracens.com/tickets.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in