Robert Kitson joins the media scrum surrounding All Blacks star Dan Carter as he prepares to make his Perpignan debut in their Heineken Cup clash with Leicester Tigers. Read his report from the front line in the Guardian
"There were eight camera crews wedged into the cramped away dressing room at the Stade Aimé Giral yesterday, plus half a dozen photographers and a leather-jacketed scrum of reporters loitering at the back. After about 20 minutes they finally got what they wanted: a few words in French from the lips of the world's most expensive rugby player. "Je suis Dan," whispered Dan Carter, rather unnecessarily. If he ever gets round to ordering a meal entirely in Catalan, the story will lead the local news bulletins for days.
"Such is the surreal new life of the highest-profile étranger in European club rugby. Carter may have represented his native Canterbury for years but the most daunting crusade of his life began in Roussillon this week, beneath the snow-capped Pyrénées where the Cathars once ruled. Can any player, even the best fly-half on earth, be worth £35,000 a match?"
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