FORMER IRELAND INTERNATIONAL Chris Farrell has had his contract terminated by French club Oyonnax following his conviction in connection with the gang rape of a woman in Bordeaux.
Last month five rugby players went on trial in a Bordeaux court for the crime which occurred in March 2017. The five men were teammates at Grenoble at the time, and were in the city after losing a Top 14 match to Bordeaux-Begles.
On 12 March 2017, a 20-year-old student who met the players in a bar that weekend filed a complaint to police alleging she was raped in a hotel on the outskirts of Bordeaux.
After a two-week trial, Dubliner Denis Coulson was found guilty of gang rape and sentenced to 14 years in prison. French native Loick Jammes was also jailed for 14 years, while Rory Grice of New Zealand received a 12-year sentence. All three have appealed their convictions.
Advertisement
Dylan Hayes of New Zealand received a two-year suspended sentence for not intervening to prevent the crime.
Farrell, 31, was also charged with not preventing the crime and sentenced to four years, with two suspended. He will not serve time in prison but has to wear an electronic tag for two years and remain living in France.
Farrell left Grenoble in the summer of 2017 to join Munster, going on to make 71 appearances for the province. In September 2022 Munster announced Farrell was stepping away from his involvement with the playing squad. The decision came as the gang rape case was referred to a French criminal court.
The province then confirmed Farrell had been released from his contract in March 2023.
The centre joined Oyonnax, and made 32 appearances across three seasons. He featured 10 times this season, with his most recent appearance for the Pro D2 club a home defeat to Mont-de-Marsan on 29 November.
Farrell’s co-accused, Grice, was also on the books at Oyonnax but the club have now taken the decision to terminate the contracts of both players.
An Oyonnax statement read: “Following the verdict delivered by the Gironde Assize Court on December 13, 2024 concerning the criminal case involving Rory Grice and Chris Farrell, the Board of Directors met to decide on their future within the club’s professional workforce.
“Also, after having taken note of the criminal convictions handed down against the two players, the members of the Council unanimously took the decision to terminate the contracts of Rory Grice and Chris Farrell.
“The club will not make any further comment on this matter.”
Tyrone native Farrell came through at Ulster and made five appearances for his home province before joining Grenoble in 2014.
Farrell was also capped 15 times for Ireland, debuting against Fiji in November 2017 and winning his most recent cap against Japan in July 2021.
French club Oyonnax terminate Chris Farrell's contract following gang rape trial
FORMER IRELAND INTERNATIONAL Chris Farrell has had his contract terminated by French club Oyonnax following his conviction in connection with the gang rape of a woman in Bordeaux.
Last month five rugby players went on trial in a Bordeaux court for the crime which occurred in March 2017. The five men were teammates at Grenoble at the time, and were in the city after losing a Top 14 match to Bordeaux-Begles.
On 12 March 2017, a 20-year-old student who met the players in a bar that weekend filed a complaint to police alleging she was raped in a hotel on the outskirts of Bordeaux.
After a two-week trial, Dubliner Denis Coulson was found guilty of gang rape and sentenced to 14 years in prison. French native Loick Jammes was also jailed for 14 years, while Rory Grice of New Zealand received a 12-year sentence. All three have appealed their convictions.
Dylan Hayes of New Zealand received a two-year suspended sentence for not intervening to prevent the crime.
Farrell, 31, was also charged with not preventing the crime and sentenced to four years, with two suspended. He will not serve time in prison but has to wear an electronic tag for two years and remain living in France.
Farrell left Grenoble in the summer of 2017 to join Munster, going on to make 71 appearances for the province. In September 2022 Munster announced Farrell was stepping away from his involvement with the playing squad. The decision came as the gang rape case was referred to a French criminal court.
The province then confirmed Farrell had been released from his contract in March 2023.
The centre joined Oyonnax, and made 32 appearances across three seasons. He featured 10 times this season, with his most recent appearance for the Pro D2 club a home defeat to Mont-de-Marsan on 29 November.
Farrell’s co-accused, Grice, was also on the books at Oyonnax but the club have now taken the decision to terminate the contracts of both players.
An Oyonnax statement read: “Following the verdict delivered by the Gironde Assize Court on December 13, 2024 concerning the criminal case involving Rory Grice and Chris Farrell, the Board of Directors met to decide on their future within the club’s professional workforce.
“Also, after having taken note of the criminal convictions handed down against the two players, the members of the Council unanimously took the decision to terminate the contracts of Rory Grice and Chris Farrell.
“The club will not make any further comment on this matter.”
Tyrone native Farrell came through at Ulster and made five appearances for his home province before joining Grenoble in 2014.
Farrell was also capped 15 times for Ireland, debuting against Fiji in November 2017 and winning his most recent cap against Japan in July 2021.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Chris Farrell Oyonnax Released Rugby none