Irish-qualified out-half Billy Burns signs for Ulster

Ulster Rugby announced today that Gloucester out-half Billy Burns will join the side this summer on a two-year contract.

Burns, 24, made his Gloucester debut as a 17-year-old in an LV= Cup fixture at London Irish in 2012, before making his Aviva Premiership bow against Worcester Warriors in 2014.

The Irish-qualified player made more than 100 senior appearances for the team, playing 29 times last season, including 24 starts.

Billy, who finalised the deal at the Kingspan Stadium today said: "This is a great opportunity for me to take the next step in my career and I'm very grateful to Gloucester for supporting me in this decision.

"The Ulster squad is brimming with established and developing talent, and it will be exciting for me to challenge myself in a different environment.

"I'm really looking forward to linking up with the squad next week and getting stuck into pre-seas,on training. Hopefully I can show the Ulster supporters what I'm all about and contribute to the team in what is a hugely important season."

A big Ulster welcome to our new outhalf, @BillyBurns10 👋

Full details on the two-year deal ➡️ https://t.co/ftLAxFpLQz#SUFTUM pic.twitter.com/SnPjId54QK

— Ulster Rugby (@UlsterRugby) July 9, 2018

Bryn Cunningham, Ulster's Operations Director, said: "We're delighted that Billy has signed with us for the next two seasons.

"It has not been an easy process to find someone with the requisite abilities to add real value to our squad for this season, but thankfully we've come to an agreement with Gloucester and have been able to bring Billy across."

"Johnny McPhillips has developed brilliantly and Michael Lowry has shown that he's a serious talent, but it was critical that we had another recognised 10 with a good level of experience, otherwise we simply would've been short of numbers in that area. The addition of Billy now gives us an exciting array of young talent to call upon in the coming years.

"Billy has an impressive range of skills and has gained a considerable amount of experience for an out-half of his age. Importantly, being Irish-qualified, we have no doubt that Billy has the potential to represent Ireland in the near future."

Burns will now take up the position previously occupied by Paddy Jackson, who has now moved to Perpignan, after his contract was terminated in April.

Digital Desk