GLOUCESTER have signed Leicester fly-half Owen Williams for next season as a key replacement for another Welsh ace James Hook.

As predicted on www.gazetteseries.co.uk on Monday, Williams has been a target for the Cherry and Whites not only for his ability at stand-off but for his goal-kicking.

Hook’s departure meant Gloucester had just Billy Burns and young 20-year-old highly-rated Mat Protheroe to cover the fly-half berth so needed experience.

The bonus is that, as scrum-half Greig Laidlaw, who is off to France at the end of the campaign, was the club’s number one man to land the penalties, Williams can take over that duty as well.

Williams, who kicked a crucial winning penalty from the half-way line in December to give Leicester a breathless 18-16 European Champions Cup win over Irish giants Munster, has made 81 appearances to date for the Tigers, scoring 574 points.

The 24-year old has represented his country at age group level, and moved to the Aviva Premiership after making his breakthrough in West Wales for the Scarlets.

Director of rugby David Humphreys said: “I’m delighted that Owen will be joining Gloucester at the end of the season and I’m sure the supporters will look forward to his competition with Billy Burns for the fly-half starting spot.

“Top teams throughout Europe have two quality number tens and Owen’s experience with Leicester in both the Premiership and Europe will add some real quality and depth to a key position in our playing squad.

“He is still a young man with a real ambition to play international rugby and we all believe that Owen has the ability to play a central role in driving Gloucester forward.”

And Williams confirmed that he is looking forward to the new challenge: “I am really looking forward to joining Gloucester next season and facing new challenges in my rugby career. Gloucester is a team with a great history who play an exciting brand of rugby, which really appeals to me and I look forward to joining up with my new team-mates in the summer.”