Premiership: English starlet Fin Smith joins Northampton Saints from Worcester Warriors

Northampton Saints have announced the signing of talented English fly-half Fin Smith, who joins from Worcester Warriors on a long-term deal.

Due to all the contracts of Worcester players being cancelled after WRFC Players Ltd was liquidated, the 20-year-old is free to join with immediate affect.

Smith excelled for England at U20 level and enjoyed plenty of first team experience while at the Warriors.

The youngster will initially battle for a place in the squad with Dan Biggar and James Grayson but, with the Wales international set to depart at the end of the season, he is seen as a long-term project.

Skill set and attitude

“Fin is definitely a player who has been on our radar for a long time, and the whole coaching group are big admirers of his,” Northampton’s director of rugby Phil Dowson said.

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“He is someone that always takes the ball to the line, makes good decisions from an attacking point of view, has a bit of flair about him with an offloading game, and is incredibly brave and tough in defence.

“Everyone from within the Worcester and England U20 environments has nothing but good things to say about him. He seems to have a really good variation on his kicking game as well, and when you meet him in person you can see how mature, driven and ambitious he is.

“If you put that sort of skill set together with that attitude, you’ve got a really high-potential player who is really keen to compete – but at the age of just 20 he’s got a lot of learning and growing to do as well.

“We always talk about wanting competition within the squad, and I am really excited to see Fin, James Grayson, and Dan Biggar push each other and make each other better as they compete for the number 10 jersey at Saints.”

Smith joins a Northampton side who lost three of their opening four league matches and appeared on course to go down to yet another defeat against Wasps on Sunday, but produced a stunning late response to snatch the win.

The Saints came from 36-28 behind with two minutes remaining to emerge 40-36 victorious, which moved them up to sixth in the Premiership.

Long history of success

Smith said: “I’m really excited to sign on with Northampton Saints – a club with a long history of success, and a very talented coaching group who encourage the squad to express themselves and play a fantastic brand of rugby.

“I’ve been lucky enough to play a couple of matches at Franklin’s Gardens already, and the atmosphere around the ground is always electric – and the pitch is flawless. I can’t wait to compete for the opportunity to run out there week in, week out.

“Speaking to the club’s coaches, the ambition for this group of players is huge, and it’s clear to me that there’s a great environment to develop as a player at Saints.

“The recent uncertainly has obviously been incredibly difficult for everyone at Worcester, and I will miss the players, coaches and supporters there – the last couple of months have shown what a special club it is.

“Having grown up at Sixways, Warriors will always have a special place in my heart, but I know this is the right move for me at this stage of my career, and I’m looking forward to hopefully hitting the ground running in Northampton.”