Leicester Tigers are excited to announce development pathways and academy graduate centre Joseph Woodward has signed a new deal with the club.
A Lichfield Rugby Club junior, Woodward, 21, made his Tigers debut in 2022 against London Irish in the Premiership Cup, gaining valuable experience with performance partner club Nottingham Rugby in 2023/24.
The former England U18 and U20 international has represented Tigers on 21 occasions to date, featuring consistently for Michael Cheika this season, earning his first Gallagher Premiership start in round three against Newcastle.
Speaking on his new deal, Woodward said: “I’m really happy to be staying at Tigers.”
“I’ve been involved with the club since I was in school, so to get a run of games this season and contribute to the senior team has been great, and I just want to keep working hard to earn those opportunities and keep adding to what we’re building here.
Leicester Tigers General Manager, Richard Wilks said: “We’re proud of Woody’s development with us, going all the way back to when he trained with the first team in his school days and to see him get a run of games this year has been brilliant.”
“Joe's quality has never been in doubt and a full season last year with Nottingham, getting that experience gave him a good platform to step up this year with Michael and he’s certainly delivering for the team.
“The thing people outside the group won’t have seen too much yet is his leadership, particularly within his peer group. He’s an impressive young man who is desperate to be an important player for this club. We love that about him.”
