Worcester Warriors hand first-team contract to centre Ollie Lawrence

Worcester Warriors have secured the services of powerhouse centre Ollie Lawrence on a first-team contract.
The 19-year-old has pushed on from his impressive performance for the Cavaliers and England age-group teams to showcase his potential in eight appearances this season for Worcester.
Having represented his country at Under-18 and Under-20 competitions, Lawrence trained with the senior England side prior to their tour of South Africa in June.
And Worcester director of rugby Alan Solomons claimed it would not be long before the outside centre was on the fringes of the England team.
Solomons said: “Ollie is a very talented young player, who has made tremendous progress this year with some outstanding performances, especially during the European Challenge Cup match against Stade Francais in Paris.
“He is benefitting from playing with international-class centres and it is only a matter of time before he pulls on the England jersey.”
Lawrence, who hails from Birmingham, has been part of the Warriors academy since the age of 14 and burst onto the first-team scene with a try on his debut against Sale Sharks in November 2017.
The exciting back made his Premiership debut in September’s trip to Exeter Chiefs and has starred for his side during victories over Stade Francais Paris, Ospreys, Sale Sharks and Leicester Tigers.
Lawrence said: “I have really enjoyed my time at Warriors and feel I have been able to learn and develop as a player under the guidance of the coaches over the last five years.
“I am grateful to the other centres at the Club, especially Millsy, Wynand, Francois Venter and Ashley Beck, who have all helped me get to a stage where I can push for a place in our Premiership squad.
“We have moved forward on the pitch this season and I’m looking forward to being part of this Club’s future.”