England international confirms he's signed new contract, wants more caps

The versatile 24-year-old, capable of excelling in both the lock and back row positions, recently marked a significant milestone by reaching a century of senior appearances in the distinctive Black, Green, and Gold jersey during the clash against Sale Sharks last Saturday.

Coles' journey with Northampton began at the age of 13 when he joined the Academy set-up, steadily progressing through the ranks to earn a coveted spot in the first team. With an impressive track record of ten tries for the Saints, including three in the current season's 12 appearances, Coles has been a consistent and impactful presence on the field.

The talented player's contributions were duly recognised when he clinched the Club’s Breakthrough Player of the Season award in the 2021/22 season, a testament to his remarkable 29 appearances in a single campaign.

He said: “I’m absolutely delighted to be staying on with Saints. This is my boyhood Club, they spotted me out of school, have brought me through the system here since I was 14 years old, and have invested so much time and effort into making me the player that I am.

“I love playing here; it’s a proper rugby town, a Club full of tradition and history, and I feel like all the people around Northampton are so invested in us as a team – that was a big part of my decision.”

“On the pitch, it feels like we have something special brewing and I wanted to make sure I am involved in that. There’s a big group of guys that I’ve grown up playing alongside, and now I really want to be part of a group that delivers success for Northampton by winning some trophies.

“Over the last couple of years, I definitely feel like my role within the team has grown. I started out as a listener and a helper, but now I have a more senior role in leading the lineout, and with 100 games under my belt I have the experience to be able to support the squad’s other leaders with a real maturity growing now amongst this group.

“Another big part of this decision is thinking about where I would be best placed to try to get back in the England side. To do that, you have to play well and improve. The coaching here is excellent, development is a core value at the Club, and that really manifests itself when you see how much many of the players improve here as a result of the support we receive from all the staff.

“So, I am excited about what is to come for me. I feel like there’s still a lot to get out of my game, and I’m working hard on that every single day.”

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Going against Warren Gatland, who suggested removing the mark completely from the game, Moore is looking to limit the number of box kicks we see in modern rugby.

The former England hooker commented: "If you supplemented this with a law that the marking player had to tap the ball and pass or run, you would speed up the restart and not allow time to be taken by kicking to touch.

"All this would go some way to removing the bane of many fans’ match-day experience: the box kick. This type of kick has now become almost ubiquitous, not only as an exit from a team’s 22, but as an attacking option between the 22 and the opponent’s 10-metre line."

The former England hooker is the latest big name pundit to call for the controversial tactic, which is used by many teams to slow the game down, to be outlawed.

Moore added: "Once the ball is available at the back of a ruck the referee should call for it to be played and no player should thereafter be allowed to join the ruck.

"Yes, this would make the box kick more difficult – that is the point, and it would be the same for both sides."

He wrote on line-outs: "Referees should look at lineout formation. They seem to have stopped the papal conclave that used to happen before every lineout, but they are still allowing the throw-in to wait until the last second before entering the lineout.

"They already have the throw; they should not be given the further advantage of late entry which just wastes more time."

On the scrums, he added: "They are again starting to take an age to ready, form and complete. I understand referees not wanting to hasten the engage sequence, but they would be aided by a law stating that if the put-in team is not ready to engage by a stipulated time they lose the feed. If the other pack is not ready, a free kick is given.

The former England hooker believes teams, such as world champions South Africa, loading their bench with forwards should be a watershed moment for how replacements are dealt with in rugby.

Moore said: "If we cannot agree to go back to only injury-related substitutions, at least drastically reduce the number of substitutions.

"The trend towards picking benches dominated by forwards is only going to grow, limiting fatigue from which attacking space becomes available.

"This is without considering the fact that it would make club squads smaller and possibly solvent. Wouldn’t that be a good thing after 2023?"