Dan Rundle to play both rugby codes for Coventry
Coventry Bears have confirmed that winger Dan Rundle will play for them in 2015, as well as for Coventry RUFC.
The 22-year-old has signed a deal with Coventry Rugby to be an all-round player in both codes of rugby.
“It cements a growing partnership between the two clubs, and is an exciting prospect for us both and for Dan as well,” said Coventry’s rugby director Phil Maynard, according to the Coventry Telegraph.
“Playing rugby league in the summer will give Dan a chance to work on areas of the game he needs to work on to go forward, and with his pace he will certainly add to the Bears attack.
“They are now playing in the equivalent league to us, and it is a race to get us both up to the next level. It is also a statement to our supporters that they can come and watch good rugby all the year round.”
Rundle will be available for the Bears from April, when the union season ends and League One gets underway.
“It’s a partnership where everyone benefits,” exaplained Alan Robinson, the managing director of the Bears.
“Phil and I have been working hard to maximise things and this is the first real opportunity we’ve had to get something together regarding dual-registration.
“We’re hoping this is the start of what could be something special between us and a bit of a catalyst for the Cov fans to come and look at rugby league.
“Dan is an electrifying player and we all see it as a way for him to improve himself as an all-round player and not just for him to keep fit.
“There is a strategy behind it, we have a professional structure in place for the development of our players which Dan will be a part of, and hopefully he will go back to rugby union later in the summer a better player.
“As a cross-over player the transition is a lot easier for an outside back, and from what we have seen of Dan in the rugby union season it’s an exciting prospect for us.
Rundle, who played league in Sunderland a few years back, is excited by the prospect of playing both codes all year round.
“I’m ecstatic. It’s giving me the opportunity to play rugby full-time which is what I have always wanted,” he said.
“League is not that different to playing union on the wing, with less players I find I get more space with the ball which is why I enjoy it, and there is more one-on-one tackling which will help my game.
“I’ve come on in leaps and bounds since I moved down here, and hopefully this will help me continue to improve.”