Tigers boost their ranks with USA and Australian signings
PREMIERSHIP CHAMPIONS STRENGTHEN SQUAD AHEAD OF THEIR TITLE DEFENCE
LEICESTER Tigers have made three major new signings as they prepare to defend their Premiership title.
USA international hooker Joe Taufete’e, English-qualified outside back Lachlan Shelley and Australian hooker Tom Horton will be moving to Mattioli Woods Welford Road for the 2022/23 season.
Taufete’e, 29, is joining Tigers from Major League Rugby club, LA Giltinis.
He has been capped 34 times by the USA Eagles since his Test debut against South Africa at the 2015 Rugby World Cup and is the all-time record-holder for most Test tries by a hooker with 22.
Taufete’e was born in American Samoa and attended Santa Ana College in California, where he played American football as a defensive tackle.
During his school years, he was recognised with All-Conference honours.
He made the move to rugby union in 2011 and represented American clubs Belmont Shore (California) and Scioto Valley (Ohio) as well as having a shortstint with New Zealand club Otorohanga in Waikato.
In 2016, Taufete’e joined the San Diego Breakers before moving to England to join Worcester Warriors during the 2016/17 Premiership season.
He represented the Warriors on more than 50 occasions before joining French club Lyon in 2020, where he spent two seasons before agreeing a short-term deal with MLR club LA Giltinis earlier this year.
Taufete’e said: “To join a historical club like Leicester Tigers and add my name to into the history of a club like this means to me a great deal.
“I know how it is and what it means to be a Tiger, to push yourself to extremes.
“I have seen how the program has grown since Steve Borthwick took over and I am excited to be playing under his guidance.”
Tigers head coach Steve Borthwick said: “We are really pleased to be able to add a player of Joe’s experience, in not only the Premiership but also international rugby, to Leicester Tigers.
“He is a powerful player, in attack and defence, and adds competition to our hooking ranks at the club ahead of the new season.
“Joe is an impressive young man who has shown a hunger to want to be a part of our club and contribute to Leicester Tigers, on and off the field, as well as competing at the highest level of Premiership and European rugby.”
Shelley, 22, joins Tigers from Sydney-based club Eastwood after previously being a member of the Waratahs Academy.
He played his junior rugby in Gosford, on the Central Coast of New South Wales, and represented NSW Country at age-grade levels.
In 2018, Shelley joined Eastwood and represented the
Shute Shield club at Colts level before being selected to represent NSW
Country Eagles that same season in the Under-19s
Rugby Championship.
Wallabies squad in 2020 and making the step up to senior rugby as part of the Shute Shield squad for Eastwood in 2021 and 2022.
Shelley said: “I am excited about this chance to join a club like Leicester Tigers, working with players of the calibre that are at the club and under Steve Borthwick.
“I got a taste of it at the Waratahs, being around world-class players, and can’t wait for this opportunity to experience that again at Leicester Tigers. “I like the style of rugby and it excites me to have this chance to be a part of it, to learn and develop in such a professional environment.” Borthwick said: “Lachlan is young man who possesses a great desire to learn and improve and we are looking forward to welcoming him to Leicester
Tigers. He has a lot of raw talent, pace and skill, which he is keen to improve upon, and we believe he can at our club, as well as growing as a player and person on and off the pitch.
“From what we have seen of Lachlan in the Shute Shield for Eastwood, as well as his experiences with the New South Wales Waratahs Academy and age grade national sides in Australia, we have been impressed and believe he will be a good addition to our outside backs at Tigers.”
Australian hooker Horton is moving to Leicester from Super Rugby side, NSW Waratahs.
He played his junior rugby in Mosman, on Sydney’s northern beaches, and was schooled at rugby nursery St Joseph’s College before joining Sydney University in 2016.
The front-rower enjoyed success in Colts rugby before making the step up to senior rugby in 2018, where he won back-to-back Shute Shield titles alongside now Tigers team-mates Guy Porter and Harry Potter.
Horton was selected to represent the NSW Country Eagles in Australia’s National Rugby Championship during the 2018 and 2019 campaigns.
In 2020, Horton made his Super Rugby debut for the Waratahs and was called into the Wallabies squad during the Rugby Championship later that season.
Horton, 25, said: “This is an unbelievable chance to learn from and play with and against some of the world’s best players, which I am excited about.
“Leicester Tigers is a club that is respected around the world and I am looking forward to the opportunity of being a part of this group and hopefully contributing, while developing as a player and gaining a whole different life experience.
“In the conversations I have had with Steve he has explained that I need to be ready to work hard.
“Both Guy (Porter) and Harry (Potter) have said how passionate the supporter base is and how much they get around the side and play a part in what Leicester Tigers is about. I am excited to experience that.”
Borthwick said: “Tom is a young man with experience in Super Rugby, who is hungry to learn, to improve and to grow as a player, which we are looking forward to seeing him do at Leicester Tigers.
“He is tough, hard-working and someone we think will be a good addition to our front-row ranks and the club.
“Tom is very keen on being a part of what we are doing at Leicester Tigers end experiencing Premiership and European rugby.”
All three players will join the club’s pre-season programme in the coming days in preparation for the 2022/23 campaign.