Toulon president Mourad Boudjellal has attempted to play down his club’s interest in signing Springbok winger Bryan Habana.

Boudjellal claimed the former IRB Player of the Year was out of their wage bracket, although the Toulon president is not averse to telling the odd porkie to throw the media off his scent – witness his many denials at the beginning of last season when Toulon were being linked with Sonny Bill Williams.

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There is no doubt that Boudjellal would love to add a player of Habana’s class and celebrity to his all-star squad, and by his own admission the cash-rich president has the right to chose two players for this year’s squad. Jonny Wilkinson was his first and Habana, 26, has been widely tipped to be his second, with the South African international meeting Boudjellal and head coach Philippe Saint-André in the south of France this week.

“We do not have a bottomless pit of money and he is a very expensive player,” said Boudjellal afterwards. “We will not go beyond our limits. With our salary mass we are not among the richest clubs and while interest is one thing, reality is another,” he added.

The player himself has long spoken of a desire to play in France at the end of his current contract with the Bulls, so a future collaboration cannot be ruled out despite Boudjellal’s latest comments.

Certainly Saint-André would not turn down the addition of one of the finest attacking players in international rugby, as he didn’t scoff too much when presented with Wilkinson.

But should Boudjellal’s pleas of financial hardship actually ring true this time – a big if – then Bayonne, Stade Toulousain and Stade Francais all remain possible destinations. Habana’s assertion that he wouldn’t consider a move to English or Welsh clubs on the grounds of lousy weather may give Toulouse and Bayonne the edge, although the player himself insisted that staying in South Africa was also a realistic possibility.

“Bayonne, Toulouse and Stade Francais have approached me but I am giving myself two weeks to reflect,” said Habana following his Toulon meeting on Thursday. “I am going to take my time coming to a decision,” he added.

“I have offers in France, but it is also tempting to remain in South Africa. Whatever happens, I will not go to England or Wales because of the weather.

“There’s a lot to take into consideration so I’ll need to get the right people around me. I’ll talk to guys who have played in Europe and get their advice. And I’ll speak to the coach and see what he expects of me leading up to the 2011 World Cup.”

If he’s looking for a glowing reference to join Toulon then he could do worse than have a chat with fellow South African Joe van Niekerk, the former Springbok now captain at Boudjellal’s ambitious club.

The Toulon president may have tried to dampen down expectation, but he certainly did not rule out a move for Habana. Claiming “we are not favourites” is some way off denying your interest. And the big-name hunting hasn’t stopped there either, with a move for Welsh wing wizard Shane Williams also mooted in the French press this week, although a reported annual salary of €500,000 is aid to have put off Toulon, for now anyway.

Another Springbok keen to play in Top 14 is Golden Lions centre Jaque Fourie, who was widely believed to have already signed with Clermont Auvergne. But Fourie, who played a starring role in the Springboks’ recent win over the British and Irish Lions, remains under contract until October.

Golden Lions chief executive Manie Reyneke said he would do “everything possible” to keep Fourie in South Africa, although it remains likely that the player will end up at Clermont having signed a pre-contract agreement with last season’s French runners-up.

One player definitely not at Toulon next season is Samoan centre Kiri Mariner who has signed for Federale 1 club Marseille-Vitrolles – Jonah Lomu’s new side. Mariner decided to leave Toulon after having only limited opportunities last season, and following a raft of new arrivals over the summer.

Stade Francais have announced plans to play one of their home league games in Brussels this season. The idea has been given the green light by the Ligue Nationale de Rugby (LNR) and follows the successful relocating of several home games to the Stade de France in recent seasons.

Players’ union Provale has confirmed that 60 players are on the ‘unemployed’ list following the official closure of the French transfer market. That is more than double last year’s tally of 35 and does not include players who have left the professional ranks to ply their trade with amateur clubs.

Two of the promotion favourites in ProD2 come face-to-face in a heavyweight opening day encounter as Dax play host to SU Agen.

Dax are desperate for a speedy return whence they came after being relegated from Top 14 last season, while Agen finished second but still missed out on promotion after surprisingly losing at home to Oyonnax in the play-off semi-finals.

Elsewhere, the opening round of fixtures sees Federale 1 champions CA Lannemezan travel to Grenoble,  while fellow newcomers Aix-en-Provence are away to Tarbes.

Mont-de-Marsan, who were relegated from Top 14 with Dax, start their bid for a return to the top flight with a home match against La Rochelle.

Dax, meanwhile, are still waiting for new signing AJ Whalley to arrive from Australia because the ex-Western Force prop has had an emergency operation to remove a boil on his calf. Whalley has been told he cannot run for at least six weeks.

No such worries though for South African Roland Bernard, who arrived in France this week to take up a contract with Grenoble.

Opening day fixtures – 29.08.09
Grenoble v CA Lannemezan
Lyon OU v Union Bordeaux-Begles
RC Narbonne v Pau
FC Auch Gers v Colomiers
Aurillac v Oyonnax
Dax v SU Agen
Mont-de-Marsan v La Rochelle
Tarbes v Aix-en-Provence