Northampton Saints today confirm that coach Lee Radford will be seconded to Scottish Rugby for this season’s international windows.
The 46-year-old coach will join Scotland for this year’s Quilter Nations Series (in November) and the 2026 Guinness Six Nations Championship (from February to mid-March), during which time Saints will be competing in the PREM Rugby Cup competition.
Radford will then take on a permanent position within Gregor Townsend’s coaching set-up in the summer of 2026.
Since joining the men in Black, Green and Gold in 2023, former rugby league player and coach Radford has played a crucial role in shaping Saints’ defensive capabilities – with Northampton winning the Gallagher PREM title in 2024 and reaching the Final of the Investec Champions Cup in 2025.
“Radders has been an integral part of our coaching team over the past two seasons, and his impact on how we defend and how we play the game, both from a technical and an emotional point of view, has been immense,” said Saints’ Director of Rugby, Phil Dowson.
“His contributions towards our Gallagher PREM title win in 2024, and our run to the Investec Champions Cup Final in 2025, were huge – those achievements by the team speak volumes about his quality and influence on our group.
“The squad hold Lee in incredibly high esteem and have a lot of love for him as a character.”
Phil Dowson, Director of Rugby
“That quality is now also being recognised at international level, and one thing we talk about all the time here at Saints is being a development Club – we want to develop players, of course, but we want to develop coaches and our staff as well.
“Lee’s really looking forward to doing both roles in parallel and taking his expertise up to Scotland. I’m sure he’ll be a huge success up there with Gregor Townsend and his team.
“Importantly, Lee will remain with us for the majority of this season. His continued presence ensures stability and continuity for our PREM and European campaigns, and we are very confident that we have people within our system who are more than capable of stepping into those shoes when he is away with Scotland.”
Radford enjoyed a distinguished 17-year playing career, making over 350 appearances across spells with Hull FC and Bradford Bulls, and earning five caps for England. He won three Super League titles, a Challenge Cup, and a World Club Challenge with Bradford, before transitioning into coaching.
After retiring in 2011, Radford rose quickly through the ranks at Hull FC, becoming Head Coach in 2013 and leading the club to back-to-back Challenge Cup triumphs in 2016 and 2017, earning Super League’s Head Coach of the Year honours. He later coached Castleford Tigers and Samoa – helping the latter reach the Rugby League World Cup Final in 2022 – before joining Northampton Saints in 2023.
Radford said: “I am extremely grateful to Northampton Saints and specifically to Phil Dowson for giving me the opportunity to transition into rugby union – it was a leap into the unknown, but one that has been incredible so far.
“From day one, the Club, the players, and the supporters have embraced me, and I’m very thankful for the warmth and trust they’ve shown throughout my time here so far.”
Lee Radford
“Working with this group of players and coaches is a privilege. Their commitment, energy, and willingness to buy into what we’ve tried to build defensively has made my job a joy, and I’m proud of what we’ve achieved.
“The chance to coach at international level with Scotland is a huge honour and one I’m really excited about. Opportunities like this don’t come around often, so I am very grateful to Gregor and looking forward to getting started in November.
“But I am also firmly focused on Saints and the season ahead. I’m committed to making sure this year with Northampton is a successful one, and I’ll be giving everything I’ve got to help this team go even further.”
