![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/0_GettyImages-2213149169.jpg\")
<\/p>\nThe 22-year-old had been seen as a potential option for Wales going forward<\/p>\n
Higgins will move to Scotland next season<\/p>\n
Welsh-qualified centre Riley Higgins has signed for Edinburgh in a blow to Steve Tandy’s hopes of strengthening his playing options.<\/p>\n
Despite the Welsh Rugby Union scrapping its Exiles programme last year, the need to expand Wales’ player pool is more pressing than ever, with high-ranking figures within the union casting the net across the globe to find new names. Higgins, who currently plays for Super Rugby Pacific outfit the Hurricanes, was one player seen as a potential option for Tandy, with the 22-year-old qualifying for Wales through a grandmother.<\/p>\n
However, the New Zealander is also eligible for Scotland through his Ayrshire-born grandmother, and he has seemingly signalled his international intentions by signing for Edinburgh on a three-year deal from next season.<\/p>\n
JOIN OUR WALES RUGBY FACEBOOK PAGE! Latest news, analysis and much more<\/a><\/p>\n Higgins – who can play at 12, 13 or on the wing – is highly thought of in New Zealand rugby circles, making his Super Rugby debut before playing any NPC rugby.<\/p>\n He has also represented New Zealand U20s and an All Blacks XV and has unsurprisingly attracted a lot of interest from around the globe in recent times, with English, Japanese and other Super Rugby clubs also thought to be keen on securing his signature.<\/p>\n But while he was previously seen as a player who could potentially add some x-factor to the Wales midfield, Higgins has decided the next step of his career will come in Scotland, and he will more than likely come into contention for international selection by Gregor Towsend from next season.<\/p>\n “I can\u2019t wait to get stuck in with Edinburgh,” he said as his signing was confirmed on Sunday. “It\u2019s a big move but the challenge of testing myself in a new competition, with such a great team and such passionate fans is very exciting.<\/p>\n “The club has a great feel to it, and I can\u2019t wait to grow my game with Edinburgh Rugby over the next few years. I\u2019m still young and learning but I\u2019m hungry to improve as a player and person on and off the field, and help the team wherever I can in the hope of winning some titles.<\/p>\n \u201cFans can expect a hard-working player who will never give up, and someone who brings an exciting style of play,” Higgins added. “I can\u2019t wait to see you all soon!\u201d<\/p>\n Edinburgh head coach Sean Everitt added: \u201cRiley is an outstanding talent and this is a significant signing for Edinburgh Rugby.<\/p>\n “He has already proven himself at the highest level in the southern hemisphere \u2013 a player who was keeping All Blacks out of the Hurricanes\u2019 starting lineup before his 24th birthday \u2013 and we believe the best is still very much to come from him.<\/p>\n \u201cThe fact that he has chosen to turn down a potential All Blacks future, and has rejected higher offers elsewhere, to come to Edinburgh tells you everything about his ambition to succeed in Scotland. We worked enormously hard over many months to get this deal over the line, and I\u2019m delighted we\u2019ve got it done.<\/p>\n \u201cAt 23, Riley still has room to grow, and I genuinely believe the best is still to come from him. Alongside guys like Matt Currie and Mosese Tuipulotu, we are building something really exciting in our midfield, and I know our supporters will enjoy watching this group develop together. I can\u2019t wait to have him with us this summer.\u201d<\/p>\n Follow all of our channels to ensure you stay up to date with the latest Welsh rugby news. Sign up to our free daily newsletter here<\/a> and our WhatsApp channel here<\/a> for all the breaking news.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The 22-year-old had been seen as a potential option for Wales going forward Higgins will move to Scotland…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":540048,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[36918,5903,101,56,54,16296,55,9015,9051],"class_list":{"0":"post-540047","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-rugby","8":"tag-new-zealand-rugby","9":"tag-rugby","10":"tag-sports","11":"tag-uk","12":"tag-united-kingdom","13":"tag-united-rugby-championship","14":"tag-unitedkingdom","15":"tag-wales-rugby-team","16":"tag-welsh-rugby-union"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/540047","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=540047"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/540047\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/540048"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=540047"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=540047"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=540047"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}