Saracens bring in Wales scrum-half Aled Davies on a three-year deal
The club will play in the second tier of English rugby next season due to their salary cap infringements.
by Paul Dollery
SARACENS HAVE ANNOUNCED the signing of Welsh international scrum-half Aled Davies from Ospreys.
The 27-year-old will join the London club – despite their impending relegation to the Championship – on a three-year contract.
Saracens have been condemned to the second tier of English rugby for next season as punishment for their well-publicised salary cap infringements.
“It’s a great opportunity for me at a massive club,” Davies said. “It’s a massive honour to come here and I can’t wait to get started.
“It seems like there is a good team and family ethos around the club, which is very attractive for me and my family. I’m looking forward to putting my stamp on things and making an impact, hopefully.”
Davies, who has been capped 20 times, will now be ineligible for international rugby due to the 60-cap rule in place for players based outside Wales.
He played in four of the five games in their Grand Slam campaign of 2019 but was excluded from this year’s Six Nations squad by new head coach Wayne Pivac.
The departure of Davies from Ospreys – who he joined from Scarlets in 2018 – comes as fellow Wales scrum-half Rhys Webb prepares to return to the region next season.
Saracens director of rugby Mark McCall said: “Aled is an experienced, talented player and we are delighted to welcome both him and his family to Saracens. He is driven to take his game to new levels and we are excited he has chosen to do that at Saracens.”
On Monday, Saracens confirmed that England lock George Kruis is ending a 12-year spell with the club to join Japanese side Panasonic Wild Knights.