Relief for Leicester as Toby Flood signs new deal to stay until 2014

The England outside-half Toby Flood has signed a new contract with Leicester that will keep him at Welford Road until the summer of 2014. Flood, who is due to return to the side against Scarlets in the Heineken Cup on Sunday after being out of action with strained knee ligaments since the opening weekend of the season, has agreed a new deal. Flood's decision will be a relief for the Tigers, who lost a number of English players at the end of last season when Lewis Moody and Sam Vesty joined Bath and Ben Kay retired. Flood and Ben Youngs are the half-backs for England as well as Leicester, although Jonny Wilkinson has made a claim for the national outside-half jersey with match-winning displays for Toulon this season. The 25-year old Flood has started the past three Tests for England, with Wilkinson on the bench, but he will have only two matches to prove himself, Scarlets and Bath at home the following week, before England go into camp on 24 October to prepare for the autumn international series at Twickenham. Flood's return is timely for Leicester who, with their other outside-half, Jeremy Staunton, sidelined until Christmas through injury, have been forced to field a centre, Billy Twelvetrees, at No10 and they go into Sunday's game having struggled for consistency this campaign. Cardiff Blues travel to France to face Castres tonight determined to make up for their lacklustre opening against Edinburgh last weekend when they were fortunate to escape with a one-point victory. They will be without their veteran Wales flanker, Martyn Williams, who is serving a two-week ban for dangerous use of the knee against Edinburgh. "We did not play well but we still won," the Blues and Wales second-row, Bradley Davies, said. "That will give us confidence going into what will be a very tough game. Castres will ask questions of us up front and we will have to come up with the answers. Our recent record in France is very good but we know we are going to have to be at our best to get the win." Newport Gwent Dragons, who welcome the holders, Toulouse, to Rodney Parade on Saturday evening, fear their No8, Joe Bearman, who last year qualified to play for Wales on residential grounds, may have to retire because of a persistent groin injury. "The problem sounds career-threatening and it is a concern," the Dragons head coach, Paul Turner, said. "He has been to see a lot of people about it. We hope he will be back in four weeks but we will have to wait and see. We miss him but just have to get on with it."