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Kyle Eastmond has left Bath Rugby after the club decided they did not believe he was worth the salary they offered him in December.

The playmaker with six England caps has not taken part in pre-season training at Farleigh House and is expected to be at Sale Sharks next season.

In January, it was announced Eastmond had signed a new two-year deal to stay at the Rec. The Chronicle understands the salary offered to the 26-year-old would have made him one of the top earners at the club.

Then head coach, Mike Ford, had already become resigned to the fact he was going to lose centre Ollie Devoto to Exeter Chiefs and did not want to lose one of his main attacking orchestrators as well so the deal was a generous one.

Eastmond signed a "heads of agreement", with the final contract details to be finalised at the end of the season.

However, once Ford was sacked by owner Bruce Craig in May following a comprehensive review of what went wrong last season, Eastmond was informed by email that the club was not willing to honour the deal initially offered.

Speaking to the Chronicle in January, Eastmond said: "I'm very happy. I'm very glad to be staying here and continuing what we've started."

There had been rumours that one or two Super League clubs had tried to tempt him back to the 13-man code where he first made his name with St Helens, but Eastmond said: "This is the only place I wanted to be."

Bath now have only one recognised senior inside centre in Dan Bowden. According to the French media they have made an offer for Toulon and France's Maxime Mermoz, but he said in a recent press conference that he was staying with the three-time European champions.

Former England rugby league international Eastmond joined Bath in 2011. He was initially tried out in several positions, including the wing, as he learned the 15-man game before making his mark as a second playmaker alongside George Ford.

He became a key figure in the attacking structure and had a storming season in 2014/15. Eastmond was part of Stuart Lancaster's England training squad last summer but didn't make the cut for the Rugby World Cup.

His final season for Bath was punctuated by injuries including ailments to his back, a dead leg and a concussion suffered against Sale in April, meaning he could not have the influence he, nor the coaches and fans, envisaged.