Rugby: Wales' Henson may be sacked after club fight

Wales coach Warren Gatland may have the final say on a decision which could cost talented but trouble-prone back Gavin Henson a rugby career of any further significance.

Henson will find out tomorrow if he has a future in French rugby with Top 14 side Toulon after his recent bust-up within the club.

Henson was summoned to meet Toulon's head coach Philippe Saint-André and owner Mourad Boudjellal yesterday but, instead of making a final decision on his future, the club informed Henson that a second meeting would take place on Monday and a judgement made afterwards.

Henson was suspended for seven days for allegedly fighting with Australian team-mate Matt Henjak and bad-mouthing Jonny Wilkinson and club captain Joe van Niekerk during celebrations at a bar following Toulon's victory over Toulouse in Marseille. Henjak apparently dispensed some summary justice after Henson's comments.

Toulon team manager Tom Whitford said: "One of the reasons the decision has been delayed until Monday is that we still do not have a full version of events. We need to get the facts right before we can make any decision."

Henson, who has not trained with the club since the incident was due to miss last night's game against Montpellier - a match he was relying on to show some form before Wales pick their squad to face the Barbarians on June 4 at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. The saga has overshadowed the build-up to a game that Toulon need to win to stand any chance of reaching the playoffs.

However, Henson has been called to a "please explain" meeting with Wales head coach Gatland and Welsh Rugby Union chief executive Roger Lewis this week. If Henson is ultimately sacked by Toulon, Gatland will find it increasingly difficult to include the 31-times capped former Ospreys' three-quarter in any one of his summer squads.

Wales follow up their June meeting with the Barbarians with games against England (twice) and Argentina in August and, if Henson is not included there, his World Cup chances will look bleak.

However, Gatland has been a staunch defender of the maverick star but even his tolerance levels may have worn thin. The fact that Henson has been given the chance to plead his case rather than simply not been picked for the coming World Cup camp suggests that there remains hope.

Ospreys have said they are interested in talking to Henson if he departs from Toulon but, at 29 and with a "hard to manage" label round his neck, Henson's hopes of any significant international career seem to be fading fast. He was omitted from both the 2003 and 2007 World Cups - first by then Wales coach Steve Hansen, who preferred other players; and then by Gareth Jenkins as he felt Henson was not match-fit.

He has also regularly made headlines for the wrong reasons. His 2005 autobiography contained comments on the 2005 Lions tour of New Zealand - and some of the players - for which he later had to apologise.

Henson was only a bit part player on that ill-fated tour and was banned for 10 weeks later that year for use of the elbow during a game.

He was charged with rowdy behaviour on a train in 2007 before charges were dropped and his engagement to singer Charlotte Church lasted just five weeks before they split in a blaze of publicity.

Henson is not the only Welsh player in trouble. Strong-running No 8 Andy Powell has also been asked to explain himself to Gatland and Lewis after he appeared before the Wasps board on Friday to explain how he lost two pints of blood and had 10 stitches inserted in a head wound after he was struck by a bar stool during a bar-room brawl in west London.

Wasps are still to make a decision on his future. Last year Powell, 29, was dropped from Wales' Six Nations squad after he was arrested in the early hours of the morning after being discovered on the M4 in Wales driving a golf buggy, taken from the team hotel following an international match. Powell was fined and banned from driving.