Hawick’s Rhys Tait swaps one English Champ Rugby side for another, moving to Coventry from Doncaster Knights

The Hawick 23-year-old, a former Scotland under-20 captain, had been with the South Yorkshire side since June 2023, making 62 appearances over his three seasons there, following four on loan from Glasgow Warriors’ academy earlier in 2023.

Flanker Tait – previously with Hawick, Edinburgh’s Boroughmuir Bears, Melrose’s Southern Knights and the old Newcastle Falcons’ under-18s – looks to be a like-for-like replacement for former Melrose back-row forward Allan Ferrie, now at Newcastle Red Bulls, and he’s relishing the prospect of playing for the West Midlands club next season, saying: “I am super-excited and grateful to continue my rugby journey at Coventry.

“Coventry play an exciting brand of rugby which I can’t wait to be a part of and draw big crowds.

“I’m excited to see what we can do with what seems to be a very promising squad for the upcoming campaign.”

Welcoming him to the city’s Nick Newbold Stadium, head coach Alex Rae said: “I’m delighted to bring Rhys to Coventry.

“Everyone we’ve spoken to has only said great things about him as a player, and also as a person.

“He will really fit into what we do here. He’s dynamic, tough and has a great skill-set.

“We’re excited to see how we can push him on further.”

Coventry finished third in the English championship last season, on 93 points from 26 fixtures, five places and 20 points better off than Doncaster, and they went on to lose 58-24 away to Bedford Blues in May’s play-off semi-finals.