Sharks raid Warriors to sign Strauss

Sale Sharks have signed Scotland international Josh Strauss from Glasgow Warriors.

The back-rower, a cult figure courtesy of his full-length beard, has signed a three-year deal with the Premiership side, having impressed since arriving in Pro12 from Super Rugby franchise Lions in his native South Africa in 2012.

Naturalised in his adopted country, Strauss made his Scotland debut against Japan at the Rugby World Cup in 2015.

"Since coming to the UK I always had it in the back of my mind that I wanted to play in the Premiership, which is a highly rated competition by players in South Africa," Strauss said in a statement.

"I signed for Glasgow and needed to sign for a second term in order to qualify to play for the national side. I have really enjoyed my time with the Warriors but I asked my agent to look around in the Premiership for me. He came back with Sale Sharks who have a good name, a good record in the Premiership and looked an attractive proposition."

BREAKING NEWS:@JoshStrauss1 signs for Sale Sharks! #JoinTheHunt pic.twitter.com/X000YdvUpY

— Sale Sharks (@SaleSharksRugby) February 28, 2017

Sale's director of rugby Steve Diamond said: "Josh is a world-class ball-carrying forward. He has been performing well for both Glasgow and Scotland over the past five years and will complement the squad in the ball-carrying department. He is a leader and a very powerful athlete."