Aviva Premiership

Leicester sign All Black Brad Thorn

ESPN Staff

Brad Thorn won the 2011 Rugby World Cup with New Zealand © Getty Images Enlarge

Leicester Tigers have bolstered their squad with the significant addition of All Blacks' World Cup-winning lock Brad Thorn.

Thorn will bring a wealth of experience to the Tigers' side having won rugby's biggest prize alongside a Super Rugby title and the Heineken Cup which he picked up while at Leinster in 2012. Thorn, who has also got extensive experience of rugby league, will add to the Tigers' second-row resources and will vie with the likes of Ed Slater and Graham Kitchener for a place in the side.

The news was broken by Leicester Mercury with Thorn set to arrive in September.

"We have signed him and he will be with us by the end of September," Cockerill told the newspaper. "I have met him several times and spoken to him at length. We have had a long discussion about where he is at. He is a very driven individual, he wants to play in the Premiership and he wants to win the Premiership.

"An opportunity has arisen here out of circumstance and he wants to play one more season. That gives me and the club the opportunity to bring one of the great all-time rugby players that the world has ever seen into this environment and have 10 months of his experience.

"He turns 40 while he is here but if anyone questions his age or commitment, you wait until you meet him. It's a good signing and adds experience to the squad. Brad wants to play. He doesn't need the money or the kudos. He wants to test himself."

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