Aviva Premiership
Gloucester bring in Canterbury scrum-half Heinz
ESPN Staff
February 24, 2015
Willi Heinz has captained Canterbury in New Zealand's ITM Cup © Getty Images
Enlarge

Gloucester have boosted their half-back options for next season with the signing of Crusaders scrum-half Willi Heinz.

The 28-year-old will join Scotland captain Greig Laidlaw and youngster Callum Braley in competing for the No.9 shirt at Kingsholm.

Heinz, who has captained Canterbury in his native New Zealand's ITM Cup, admitted he was looking forward to continuing his career in the Northern Hemisphere.

"I've always taken an interest in the Premiership," Heinz said. "It's hard, tough rugby and an outstanding competition. And there's the chance to play in Europe as well, which is an added draw. It's an intriguing prospect and I'm looking forward to taking part in it.

"Since starting to talk to [director of rugby] David Humphreys, I've started to watch as much of Gloucester as I can. They seem to play a really exciting brand of footy and the whole club seems pretty driven to get back to the top of the English game.

"It's my understanding that Gloucester traditionally is a stronghold of English rugby. That appeals to me and I'm excited about doing what I can to contribute to something like that."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd

Live Sports

Communication error please reload the page.

ABOUT COOKIES

To help make this website better, to improve and personalize your experience and for advertising purposes, are you happy to accept cookies and other technologies.

More Info Here Cookie Choices