Wales wing Alex Cuthbert has signed a new deal that will keep him at the Ospreys until beyond the next World Cup.
The 32-year-old joined the Swansea.com Stadium region on a single-season package last summer after three years with Exeter Chiefs. Now he has negotiated a fresh two-year contract that will see him stay with the Ospreys through to 2024.
It’s an arrangement that will suit all concerned.
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Cuthbert may only have featured nine times for the Ospreys since returning to Wales but he’s impressed the coaches with his willingness to look for work on the field and his attitude off it, with the big man fitting in well and proving helpful to younger players.
The 51-cap player, who earned a Wales recall this term, said: “I’m really happy to extend my time at the Ospreys and look forward to pushing on as a squad next season.”
He is on record as saying his time in Devon with Exeter "rejuvenated" him.
But it was his regional form saw him reclaim his place in the Wales set-up after a gap of four years. Against Benetton in October he pulled off one of the tackles of the season by screeching across field to haul down Monty Ioane, one of the United Rugby Championship's most dangerous players, when a try had seemed certain. You can read more about that effort here.
He marked his return to the Test scene with an acrobatic finish against Fiji in November and completed his half-century of caps with a remarkable performance against England at Twickenham when Cuthbert was arguably the best player on the field, with his 17 runs making 188 metres for his team and seeing seven defenders beaten.
He has also given the Ospreys more balance out wide. They have flyers such as Keelan Giles, Luke Morgan and Mat Protheroe but Cuthbert provides tackle-busting power and height and played a key role in the late-season win over the Dragons by collecting four high balls in a row in the second half, helping his side pull off a comeback win.
The 6ft 6in, 16st 10lb wing will tour South Africa with Wales this summer and is set to be a strong contender for a spot in Wayne Pivac’s World Cup squad next year.
And despite the ex-Cardiff man having been on the top–flight scene for more than a decade, Ospreys head coach Toby Booth believes Cuthbert still has scope to become an even better player.
“Our aim when we brought Alex back to the Ospreys was to get him consistently on the pitch and influencing games, which we duly achieved,” said Booth.
“His performances warranted an international recall and helped us achieve Champions Cup qualification.
“The exciting thing is that he has more improvement to come and will be instrumental in us competing next season.”
