Scotland Appoints Lee Radford as New Defence Coach

Rugby union's Scotland national team has named former rugby league player Lee Radford as its new defence coach. Radford, who played for Hull FC and Bradford Bulls, will combine his new role with Scotland with his position as defence coach at Northampton, until the end of the season. He will then take on the position full-time, on a contract until the end of the 2027-28 campaign.

Key Takeaways:

Lee Radford, a former rugby league player, has been appointed as Scotland's new defence coach, replacing Steve Tandy who left in July to become Wales' head coach.
Radford will combine his new role with Scotland with his position as Northampton's defence coach until the end of the season, before going full-time with the national team.
The 46-year-old brings a wealth of experience from rugby league and union to the defensive area of the game, and will be able to build on the good work done in that area by Steve Tandy.
Radford has previously coached Castleford Tigers, Samoa, and Hull in rugby league, and has expressed his enthusiasm for the opportunity to coach on the international stage in rugby union.
The Scotland coaching team now also includes forwards coach John Dalziel, skills and contact coach Pete Horne, and scrum coach Pieter de Villiers.
Radford is looking forward to working with the coaching group and the Scotland players to continue the team's strong defensive cohesion.

Statistics:

Radford will be 47 years old when he takes on the role as Scotland's defence coach full-time in the 2027-28 season.
The Scotland national team has been very sound defensively over the last few years, with similarities to how Northampton defend.
Radford has been coaching at Northampton as defence coach since [Source 1 - not provided].
Off the field, the management of Scotland are well-connected and there is a brilliant chemistry among the players, according to Radford.

Sources:

[Source not provided - please provide the exact source for future reference]