Edinburgh have lured Scotland international Dylan Richardson to the Scottish capital on a two-year deal, the URC outfit have confirmed.
The South African-native, 26, has won six caps for Scotland since his debut last year and joins from fellow URC side the Sharks.
Meanwhile, Exeter Chiefs have also completed the signing of Gloucester scrum-half Charlie Chapman ahead of the 2025/26 season, becoming their fifth signing for next year.
Edinburgh sign Dylan Richardson from the Sharks
Commenting on joining Edinburgh, who sit eighth in the URC at the time of writing, Richardson said: “I’m incredibly excited for this next chapter in my career. Moving to Scotland and joining a club with such a strong history and passionate support base is a massive opportunity.
“I’m looking forward to embracing the new environment, challenging myself both on and off the field, and contributing to the continued success of Edinburgh Rugby.”
He is also the latest Scottish international to tie their future down with the capital outfit, with Pierre Schoeman and Grant Gilchrist both recently penning extensions.
Edinburgh head coach Sean Everitt added: “We’re thrilled to welcome a player of Dylan’s quality to Edinburgh Rugby. He’s a strong and dynamic player who brings plenty of experience from his time with the Sharks and his international appearances for Scotland. His versatility, being able to play both hooker and in the back row, will be a real asset for us.
“Having worked with Dylan previously, I’m very familiar with his game and I know he will be a good fit culturally. He fits the profile of the squad we’re trying to build here at Edinburgh, and we’re excited to welcome him to the club this summer.”
Richardson also adds versatility to the Edinburgh pack, as he can cover both hooker and back-row.
Exeter Chiefs draft in latest scrum-half
Chapman is the latest scrum-half to head to Sandy Park for the 25/26 Premiership season, following in the footsteps of former Cherry and White teammate Stephen Varney.
He also joins a growing list of recruits for the Chiefs, with Julian Heaven, Joseph Dweba and Tom Hooper also joining the club.
“I’m extremely excited to join Exeter Chiefs,” Chapman said upon his announcement. “Chiefs are a team with a rich history of success, and they have an extremely passionate fan base. I can’t wait to be a part of it.”
🟥 England star learns disciplinary fate after ‘foul play’ in European Cup win
The Gloucester native has made over 90 appearances for the club since his debut in 2018, and has also represented Scotland U20s.
Exeter Chiefs director of rugby Rob Baxter added: “We’re really pleased to have pinned down a second scrum half signing. It was an area of our squad that we wanted to strengthen and create more competition at within the side.
“Charlie has got a lot of experience in the Premiership already but is also a guy that’s looking for a new challenge and wants to look to potentially win things in the future.
“He’s someone we’ve looked at closely. He’s got great physical attributes – great pace, very high fitness – so we think he could be very good at adding tempo and speed to what we’re wanting to do and how we want to play in attack.
“He’s a guy with great character, so we’re really looking forward to working with him.
“There are some things we’re going to do moving forward to create a fresh start. With Rob Hunter as new head coach and a new coach coming in, we feel bringing in players to add to our existing squad competition and add to how we want to play will be great additions for us.”
👀 READ MORE: Rassie Erasmus issues two-word response after World Rugby decides the fate of the Bomb Squad