JONNY Sexton is toying with the idea of extending his stay in Paris to three years, but a lot will depend on how he and his wife Laura cope with their first baby which is due in the coming weeks.
Sexton, who led Racing Metro to the semi-finals of the Top 14, also revealed that his coaches, including former rival Ronan O’Gara, have congratulated him on a fine first season with the French club.
“There’s no deadline really, I think it started slowly already so we’ll see,” he said of the contract negotiations.
“There’s a lot to consider, with the baby due and we’ll see how we cope in Paris by ourselves with that so that will be a factor and see how happy Laura is with the baby when I’m gone six days a week so it’s a lot to consider.
“Ideally as a player you would want to get things sorted out as soon as possible because rugby players deal in one- and two-year contracts. You like to get things sorted out as quick as possible and the nature of the game with injuries and guys having to retire on the back of one injury, so you want to look after your future and your family.
“Like I said, sooner the better but it’s hard to make a decision because if you’re asked to make a decision before the start of next season you don’t know what happens if you make a decision, and then things go amazing for the first three, four months and then you regret it so there’s not a day that goes by you don’t think about it at some capacity about the opportunity of coming home, so there’s the other, Leinster won the Rabo so the need of coming back mightn’t be as big now.”
Of his first term in the Top 14, Sexton said: “The coaches said it to me, and he [O’Gara] said it to me, that you’ve got to be really proud of your first year. It meant a lot coming from them. And all the other players as well were congratulating me.
“The standards that you set for yourself, you want to be playing your best rugby and you want to be winning trophies. I suppose that’s where we’re different I suppose.
“Some people might have viewed the semi-final as a success to get there because of the start but for me a success would have been to win the Top 14.”
