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Reds coach Thorn dumps Wallaby Cooper

Thorn's dumping has raised speculation that Cooper could move overseas to either Japan or Europe.

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Coach Brad Thorn said he told the flyhalf he was no longer part of the Reds' plans for next season, Brisbane's Courier Mail reported.

"I've had honest conversations with Quade Cooper and scrumhalf Nick Frisby about where they currently sit in our plans for 2018," Thorn told the newspaper.

"They're not training with the Reds at the moment and will be training with their clubs instead,"

New Zealand-born Cooper, 29, signed a three-year contract with the Reds in September last year after a stint with European heavyweights Toulon.

 

Thorn, a former All Black, replaced Nick Stiles in October. Stiles had guided the Reds to just four wins in his first season in charge.

The duo have a history at test match level where Thorn, as an All Black, famously came to the aid of Richie McCaw when he was kneed in the face by Cooper at the bottom of a ruck in a 2011 Rugby Championship match.

The controversial Cooper has played 70 Tests for Australia but has not been selected by Wallabies coach Michael Cheika since June, suggesting his international career could also be over.

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Agence France-Presse

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