Wallabies centre Matt Toomua believes that captain Ben Mowen’s departure prior to the 2015 World Cup won’t spark a mass exodus from Australia.
Last week, the Brumbies and Wallabies No 8 announced that he was leaving Australia at the end of 2014, therefore missing out on the World Cup in England the following year.
‘Benny's situation is unique, he's got a young family and he wants to spend time with them. I can vouch for that as a guy who hangs out with him a lot,’ said Toomua.
‘I don't know what guys are going to do post the World Cup. Four years ago they said there was going to be a mass exodus after the World Cup and there wasn't.
‘I don't know what the flow-on effect [from Mowen's exit] will be, but there's still a lot to be achieved here and a Wallabies jersey does hold a lot of weight, otherwise everyone would be overseas.'
Brumbies coach Stephen Larkham has confirmed that Mowen will be the club's captain for this season, but added that no decision had been made yet regarding who would succeed Mowen in 2015.
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