Wallaby Shepherd becomes a Saint

Australian utility back Cameron Shepherd has signed with the Northampton Saints and will join the English Premiership club once he finishes the season with the Western Force.

The versatile 28-year-old outside back has played for the Force for the last six years and leaves the Perth team as their all-time leading points-scorer.

Shepherd started his career with the Waratahs and represented Australia at Under-21 and 'A' level before going on to win nine Test caps for the national team.

He made his Test debut against England - the country of his birth - in 2006 and also played for the Wallabies in the 2007 World Cup.

He commented: "It's an exciting opportunity for me. I've heard lots of good things about Jim Mallinder as a coach and about the Saints as a club. Jim has got the team playing a great brand of rugby which I believe suits my style of play and to which I think I've got a lot to offer.

"It is definitely going to be a new challenge for me. The Premiership is a tough competition and there are a lot of teams which like to play exciting rugby, especially the Saints. You can see that with the quality of player that there is at the club, players like Ben Foden and George Pisi, who are established internationals.

"I'm looking forward to playing with those guys and the rest of the squad, and for playing for a club which has a great reputation and an amazing history. Northampton is similar to the Force in that it has a great fanbase behind the team and I'm looking forward to showing the Saints supporters what I can do as a player," added Shepherd.

Mallinder said that Shepherd is a good addition to the Saints squad.

He said: "Cameron is a very talented player who has shown regularly that he has the ability and temperament to compete at the highest level. He has a positive impact for his team's attacking capability but is also sold defensively and under the high ball. He will also give us another goal-kicking option, and his versatility and quality will give us added depth in the back three positions.

"We're looking forward to welcoming him to Franklin's Gardens and believe that he will contribute a good deal to the squad," added the Saint boss.