Henry Slade insists England 'always going to be the pinnacle’ amid calls for the RFU overseas rule to be scrapped

Henry Slade has insisted that playing for England is always going to be the pinnacle of his and fellow England players' careers, despite the Gallagher Premiership seeing the likes of Owen Farrell and Manu Tuilagi announce their departures to French clubs.

Speaking on the Rugby Review show live on TNT Sports, the Exeter Chief centre said: "England is always going to be the pinnacle for a lot of players.

"I love playing for my country, and obviously in the summer I was gutted not to be able to go and do it there, but to be able to get selected again and come back was a really proud moment for myself and my family and friends."

Slade, 31, also agreed that the Rugby Football Union's overseas rule, which is a policy that since 2012 means only players based in England will be considered for national duty, should be binned.

Lawrence Dallaglio, speaking to Slade, said: "It makes players choose between playing for country or securing your financial future, and I don't think that's right.

"Of course, you want to play for your country, so you should be allowed to play abroad," the former England captain said, to which Slade nodded in agreement.

Dallaglio has been one of a number of leading figures calling for the rule to be scrapped, previously bringing up the likes of Jack Willis, who is ineligible for England as he plays for Toulouse.

Several England internationals have announced their intention to leave for France at the end of their contracts this season, meaning that at least nine of Steve Borthwick’s squad from the World Cup last year will ply their trade across the Channel.

Northampton Saints' Courtney Lawes recently made the decision to join Brive in ProD2, following the trend that includes Farrell joining Racing 92 and Tuilagi heading to Bayonne.

Slade has recently agreed to extend his contract at Exeter, which was due to expire this summer. The centre did talk to Top 14 side Stade Francais after being left out of his country’s World Cup squad earlier this season, but he has since forced his way back into Borthwick’s side.

Exeter have seen plenty of departures in the last year, with Joe Simmonds, Sam Simmonds, and Jack Nowell all leaving for the Top 14 in the past 12 months.

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