Reds must wait a year for centre Stanley

AUCKLAND BLUES centre Benson Stanley could yet be a transfer target for a host of European clubs, including Munster, according to his coach Pat Lam.

Australian-born Stanley, 26, made his Test debut for the All Blacks against Ireland last June and has won three caps under Graham Henry. He had been a reported target for the Irish province before taking himself off the market by re-signing with the Super XV franchise but Munster, amongst others, may not have to wait long to launch another bid to capture the hard-hitting midfielder as his new deal at Eden Park is for only 12 months.

“Benson’s one of our guys and he was mentioned as a Munster target but he’s signed up for one more year and he might shoot up there after that,” Lam said. “I’m not sure where, though, you’re never sure where a guy’s going to end up — Toulouse, Toulon, the English clubs, there’s a big market for the boys offering bigmoney that’s hard to compete with.”