London Wasps fly-half Danny Cipriani will join Melbourne Rebels at the end of the season, but on the evidence of the club’s match against Saracens last weekend, he will maintain complete focus until the final whistle in the very last match of his Wasps career.
Having come to terms with the fact that his chances of earning an international recall are effectively non-existent for the time being, and safe in the knowledge that he doesn’t have long left to make a mark at the club he’s supported since childhood, it’s likely that Wasps will now see the best of the fly-half before he sets sail for sunnier climes in Australia.
Cipriani’s kicking against Saracens was impeccable; and it was his nine points which sealed a vital 9-0 victory to keep Wasps’ hopes of a place in the play-offs alive.
And it’s this match-winning talent which the Guinness Premiership side will undoubtedly miss going into next season.
Cipriani is keen to lead Wasps to glory in both the European Challenge Cup and the Premiership before he leaves the club: a scary prospect for supporters of rival teams, as there are few better fly-halves in the league when he’s determined and fully focused on the job in hand.
"Now I want more than anything to make sure we finish the season with trophies and medals," the 22-year-old said.
"We haven't won the Challenge Cup for seven years now and we haven't got the Premiership trophy in the cabinet which is strange - I want to end the season with two medals."
Cipriani admitted his disappointment after being omitted from England’s squad for the Six Nations, and it seems this snub had a key bearing on why he decided to say “yes” to a move to Melbourne.
Despite this, the 22-year-old has not given up on his dream of winning a place back in the England squad in the future, although head coach Martin Johnson has stated that his international career would be temporarily over with a move to the southern hemisphere.
For now, though, his sole focus will be on making sure Wasps challenge for silverware at the end of this season.
The club are set to face Gloucester in the quarter-finals of the European Challenge Cup in April and currently lie fourth in the Guinness Premiership table – 10 points behind league leaders Leicester Tigers with a game in hand.
Wasps supporters should appreciate Cipriani while they still have him in their ranks, because one thing is for certain: they’ll miss him when he’s gone.
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