Scotland snap up Wigan rugby league coach Shaun Wane

Matt King

Shaun Wane is leaving the Wigan Warriors rugby league club for a post with the Scottish Rugby Union.

Scotland rugby coach Gregor Townsend believes rugby league recruit Shaun Wane can add "real value" once he switches from his role as Wigan Warriors Super League coach.

Wane - who has coached Wigan to two Super League titles - has been appointed by the Scotland Rugby Union (SRU) as their new head high performance coach and will work with all Scottish teams, including Townsend's Six Nations squad.

Townsend has welcomed the former Great Britain league international's appointment.

"There is a lot we can learn from Shaun in both the technical side of the game as well as wider aspects of coaching,"  Townsend told the Scottish Rugby website.

"The range of skills now needed across the pitch in rugby union, aligned with the style of play we are developing means that all our players have to be able to pass accurately and deploy effective lines of running that will either hold defenders or find space.

"What Shaun brings from rugby league is immediately transferrable and will add real value."

Wane stunned the English rugby league sector in May when he announced he would be leaving Wigan at the end of the season.

The 53-year-old has been with Wigan most of his adult life, playing 149 times and working in their age-group and academy grades before becoming head coach in 2011, replacing current Kiwis coach Michael Maguire.

Wane has since coached the Wigan Warriors to the Super League-Challenge Cup double in 2013.

Rugby league insiders had been expecting him to seek a National Rugby League job in Australia and he was also linked to the Catalans Dragons' Super League coaching role.

But the SRU have snapped up, claiming in a statement he would bring "an unrivalled wealth of rugby league expertise" to its high performance programmes", including its rugby academy.

He would work closely with current Scottish elite coaches, at all levels, focusing on defensive technique and understanding, handling and agility skills for front five forwards and mindset.

"I see this as a fantastic opportunity to not only impart what I have learnt over my career in rugby league as a player and coach, but also to learn myself from union and look to support the excellent work already being done in Scotland," Wane told Scottish Rugby.

"The Scottish way of playing the game is fast, highly skilled and positive and that is something I want to contribute to, and help develop further.

"It is a fresh challenge for me, but the chance to work across all the teams and age-grades, with the BT Sport Academy players, both male and female, was an opportunity I am excited to take."

SRU director of rugby Scott Johnson said there was "a well-established practice of sharing information and expertise between league and union and we wanted to add a new dimension to our coaching set-up".

"Having someone of Shaun's experience spend time with our players and coaches can only benefit Scottish rugby and help us to identify and develop skill sets we will need to keep our teams progressing forward and competing at the highest levels."