Signings and departures 2011/12

Worcester Warriors have today announced that Graham Kitchener will leave Sixways Stadium at the end of this season.

Bromley-born second row Kitchener has made 61 appearances for the Warriors and scored 25 points during his time at the club.

Head Coach Richard Hill said: "We're obviously disappointed that Graham Kitchener will leave the club at the end of the season.

"He has come through the Warriors Academy system and progressed to the England Saxons squad through his performances and development at Sixways.

"Graham remains a key part of our squad and will continue to represent the Warriors throughout the remainder of the season in the RFU Championship play-offs and British & Irish Cup.

“He is an outstanding professional and I have no doubt that he will continue conduct himself in the right manner and do everything he possibly can to help the club gain promotion.

“We have been very active with the recruitment of second rows as we build for next season. We now look forward to revealing to our supporters the new recruits, who boast a wealth of experience and talent in this position, in the coming week.”

Kitchener said: “This was obviously a very tough decision to make as I feel a great sense of loyalty to everyone at the club who has helped me to progress from an early age. However, after much deliberation I feel the time is right to give myself a new challenge.

“I would like to thank everyone involved at the club, especially Andrew Stanley and Gary Meechan who have always guided and helped me and Phil Davies who has taken a lot of time in mentoring me individually this year. All of this input has been invaluable to me.

“The fans have also always been great and I have been humbled by how many have told me of their desire for me to stay, which made the decision even harder to take.

“For now, though, my only focus is playing as big a part as I can in helping the club secure promotion for next season.”

Worcester Warriors have today announced that lock legend Greg Rawlinson will leave Sixways Stadium at the end of the current season and return to New Zealand.

Former New Zealand international Rawlinson has been a key figure in the Worcester pack over the last four seasons and is currently just six games short of making a century of appearances for Warriors.

Rawlinson, a hugely popular member of the squad and firm fan’s favourite at Sixways, has always provided an abrasive and physical presence around the field for Warriors as a fine lineout forward and strong scrummager.

Head Coach Richard Hill praised Rawlinson’s outstanding contribution during his time at Warriors and acknowledged the natural-born winner would be determined to go out on a high and secure promotion for the club from the RFU Championship.

“Greg has been simply fantastic for the club,” said Hill. “He is someone who has had a very hard playing career after always putting his body on the line week after week. But he is a true professional who never lets his standards drop and gives absolutely everything he can in a Worcester jersey.

“Greg has provided a real hard edge to the Warriors pack over the last four years. His levels of physicality have been a real asset for the club and he is also a very skilful player with his restarts and work at the set piece.

“We have had to manage him over the course of this season, in what has been an attritional campaign, and he has responded 100 percent with some very big performances for us.

“Greg is undoubtedly a fearsome customer to come up against on the field. But away from the game he is a very likeable and popular member of the squad who is admired by his team-mates and supporters. He will leave a big hole in the team and we wish him every success after this season.”

Rawlinson said: “I have really enjoyed my time at Worcester Warriors and in England. It has been a couple of tough years, but with the way the guys are working now, and the systems we have in place, I know that if we play to our potential we can gain promotion back to the Premiership.

“I have always had a great relationship with the fans who have backed me since my arrival in 2007.  Playing in front of a packed Sixways Stadium will be a special memory that will stay with me for the rest of my life.

“My focus is now on the rest of this season and doing everything I can to help the club win promotion. After that, I hope to be able to return to Sixways in the future and cheer the Warriors on from the stands.”