FORMER England captain and Rugby World Cup winning prop Phil Vickery has joined Warriors’ coaching team as a‘massive statement of intent’ ahead of the new Aviva Premiership season.

Vickery, known as the Raging Bull, joins Worcester as assistant forwards coach just days after the club revealed new forwards coach Nigel Redman as Richard Hill continues to build his backroom staff.

Ex-England international Vickery, who played for his country on 73 occasions and was a member of the 2003 Rugby World Cup winning squad in Australia, enjoyed a glittering playing career.

The 36-year-old played club rugby at Gloucester for 11 years, after being persuaded to move to Kingsholm as a 19-year-old by current Worcester head coach Hill, before a successful spell at Wasps ahead of his retirement due to injury in 2010.

Vickery, who played in three Rugby World Cups, including as England captain in the 2007 tournament, and toured Australia and South Africa with the British and Irish Lions, said: “I’m delighted to be taking up this role with the Warriors.

“Since I retired I’ve had the chance to try out a variety of new projects and I look forward to continuing to develop these areas, but rugby has always been my first love and I’ve kept in close touch with the game.

“I know Hilly well from my Gloucester days and I’ve worked with Phil Larder and Nigel Redman before, so it’s a coaching team I feel very comfortable joining.

“Throughout my career I’ve always been driven to succeed and, with the Premiership being as competitive as ever, it is important that everybody at Worcester pulls together to keep moving the club up the table. I’m looking forward to joining up with the boys for pre-season and having a positive impact on the club.”

Hill is delighted to be reunited with Vickery and added: “I coached Phil at Gloucester at the start of his career and we have kept in touch with him ever since so I know him very well and exactly what he will bring to Warriors.

“Phil’s reputation in the game goes before him and he will give us huge technical knowledge and ability in the scrum, having only recently finished playing at the very highest level. We have a number of props at the club to develop and he will help enormously.

“His general game understanding is also excellent and we expect him to have an impact in other areas and the way we attack and defend.

“Phil’s attitude is simply superb; he demands excellence and is a winner. When we first spoke he wanted to know what were Worcester’s ambitions, were we determined, once and for all, to move up the league and be a powerful force in English rugby.

“I am absolutely delighted that Phil is now joining the coaching team. The more people in the organisation who have that desire and hunger to win at all costs the better. Nigel, Phil Larder and Phil Vickery are all winners and will all make a big impact on the playing squad in the coming season.”

Charlie Little, managing director at Warriors, praised the qualities that Vickery would bring to the role. “As always, I am thoroughly impressed by Phil and know the impact he plans to make at Sixways,” he added.

“When we met, we shared with him the vision and plans for the club going forward and how we wanted him to be a part of that. He was very enthusiastic and wants to be heavily involved so I am delighted to get him on board at the start of this next stage in our development.

“It would be foolish not to allow him to develop a very close working relationship with the front row forwards and we see this as a fantastic opportunity for the likes of Matt Mullan, George Porter and James Currie.

“To learn the trade at close hand from not only a Rugby World Cup winner but also an ex-England captain with vast Premiership experience is huge.”

“This is a massive statement of intent from Warriors and we go into next season with real optimism.”