Hurricane Boyd is heading for Saints

NORTHAMPTON Saints have appointed Hurricanes head coach Chris Boyd as their new director of rugby on a three-year contract, starting in August.

Boyd, 59, will take over from interim boss Alan Gaffney, who has been in charge of Saints since Jim Mallinder was sacked in December.

“Northampton Saints are a club I have admired all of my coaching career,” he said. “I visited Franklin’s Gardens for a week in 2004 when Wayne Smith was head coach, and remember the passion of the Saints supporters and the strong culture at the club.

“The club’s ambitions match my own – I am confident I can help the Saints become one of the biggest and best teams in Europe.”

New Zealander Boyd will remain with Hurricanes until the end of the Super Rugby season before joining in time for the start of the 2018-19 Premiership campaign.

Saints, 10th in the table, will be the first team outside New Zealand of which Boyd has been in charge of on-field affairs.

He has been head coach of Hurricanes since 2014 and led them to the Super Rugby title in 2016. He previously took charge of Wellington and New Zealand U20s, and worked with Tonga during the 2011 World Cup, when they defeated France.

Saints chairman John White added: “Chris has an impressive record and getting him here is a massive statement for the club and confirmation of our determination to compete at the highest level.”