Ireland captain Rory Best has revealed that he is close to signing a contract extension that would bring him to the end of World Cup next year, the Independent report.
Best is currently one of three senior Irish players, along with Iain Henderson and Rob Kearney, whose IRFU contracts expire at the end of this season.
However, despite admitting that the process had been much slower than he had hoped, it seems that talks have gone well and there should be an announcement in the coming weeks.
When asked about his contract situation, the Ulster hooker said:
I think it is at a fairly advanced stage and we’ll hopefully have an announcement about that fairly soon.
The 35-year old feels he can lead his country out in Japan for the 2019 World Cup, but all his current focus is on the remainder of the Six Nations.
Best will again lead his country out against Scotland in their penultimate Six Nations fixture on Saturday, knowing that a bonus-point win will secure the title if England fail to match that against France in Paris.
