Dragons sign prop ace Bateman

Sep 1 • General News, Guinness Pro14 • 988 Views • Comments Off on Dragons sign prop ace Bateman

Powerhouse prop Greg Bateman is officially a Dragon after signing a deal to join the region.

The vastly experienced front row has linked-up with Dean Ryan’s men with immediate effect.

The 31-year-old, who has had previous playing spells at Leicester Tigers, Exeter Chiefs and London Welsh, joins recent new recruits Nick Tompkins, Jonah Holmes and Joe Maksymiw at Rodney Parade.

“We’re pleased to welcome Greg to our region and look forward to him making a big impact in our environment,” said Dean Ryan, Director of Dragons Rugby.

“He is vastly experienced from his time in the English Premiership and he will intensify competition for places up front while helping our young front row players develop.”

Bateman – who is 5ft 10in tall and weighs 18st 8lbs – made 92 appearances for Leicester in six seasons at Welford Road.

Bateman said: “I’m excited to get started with Dragons. Having spoken to Dean, there is a very clear path and vision for the region and I’m really keen to be a part of it.

“It’s a new challenge for me. I’ve played against lots of Guinness PRO14 teams before and I’m now looking forward to being part of a really strong competition.

“It’s clearly an exciting time to be a Dragon,” he added. “You can feel the positivity around the region and I can’t wait to now throw myself into the set-up.”

Notes to Editors

Bateman has made 87 Premiership Rugby appearances, scoring six tries, with spells at London Welsh (2012/13), Exeter Chiefs (2013/14) and Leicester Tigers (2014 to 2020).

The Frimley-born front row also made Tigers history by playing in all front-row positions during the 2016/17 season.

Born in Surrey and having represented England at age group level he is also Welsh qualified through his grandmother.

Bateman won the Anglo-Welsh Cup with Leicester Tigers during the 2016/17 season.