Masoe poised for Castres bow

New start: Masoe set for his Castres arrival

Castres expect to unveil new All Blacks back-row powerhouse signing Chris Masoe to their fans ahead of this weekend's Top 14 game against Montpellier.

Masoe will join fellow New Zealand 2007 World Cup squad members Byron Kelleher and Jerry Collins in playing in the competition and they will soon be joined by Dan Carter, who has signed at Perpignan for a short period.

Samoan-born Masoe has won fifteen caps for the All Blacks and will join Castres from recent Air New Zealand Cup runners-up Wellington Lions.

Masoe will be available for the next phase of the Heineken Cup, when Castres play back-to-back games against high-flying Leinster, if the French club register him for Europe.

Castres have yet to win a match in Pool Two this season with the flank set to stay for two seasons.