Palmer set for Wasps return
England lock Tom Palmer is to return to London Wasps next season on a two-year deal.
Palmer will rejoin from Stade Français, where he has played for two seasons, having moved to Paris from Wasps in 2009.
He will return alongside fellow England international James Haskell, another former Wasps and Stade Français player, who is currently playing in Japan.
Palmer, who played for England in their 19-15 Six Nations win over Italy in Rome last weekend, won the Premiership and European Cup with Wasps during his first spell at the club from 2006 to 2009.
But Wasps are not the force they were and are currently 11th in the 12-team Premiership, with only Newcastle below them in the lone relegation spot.
“This is a fantastic signing for us and I’m delighted that Tom will be here next season,” said Wasps coach Dai Young.
“Bringing the kind of quality in that Tom and James (Haskell) will deliver demonstrates our desire to have a highly competitive squad next season that will see us I hope push forward very positively,” the Welshman added.
“Tom is one of the best second-rows in world rugby and it’s a real advantage that he comes to the club with a thorough knowledge of what Wasps is all about.”
The 32-year-old Palmer, capped 35 times by England, has become a regular member of the Red Rose side in recent time, starting 17 of his country’s last 21 Test matches.
“I’m delighted to be returning to London Wasps,” said Palmer.
“I have many happy memories of three successful seasons at Adams Park and I am very excited by the prospect of my return.”
England officials made it clear after the World Cup, where a lacklustre run to the quarterfinals was ended by a convincing loss to France, they intended to select only English-based players for Test duty in future.
However, the ‘ban’ did not apply to players such as Palmer who were already on contracts with overseas clubs.
