With less than a week to go until the start of the National League 2 rugby season, Bury St Edmunds have swooped to add an experienced front row forward to their exciting squad.

Prop Collen Smith joins the Wolfpack from Namibia where he has represented the national team since 2012, playing in four World Cup qualifying matches, the Nations Cup and test matches against Argentina, Spain and Italy. In 2016 he also played for Welwitschias, the Namibian Currie Cup team.

He joins the club from Namibian Premier League club United Rugby Club where he was awarded Senior Player of the Year in 2015. He has represented them 70 times, reaching premiership final and semi-finals stages in 2014 and 2015.

Bury head coach Ollie Smith said: “Collen is another outstanding addition to the Wolfpack.

“With national and international experience, I have every confidence that he will make a positive impact in the squad.

“We have put together a great squad for this season and we have been slowly gelling and coming together as a group.

“Success doesn’t happen overnight but the squad have been working hard and we are certainly moving in the right direction.”