JOHN Brain has put an-other one over Orrell with the capture of Tommy Hayes.

Worcester's director of rugby flew to Glasgow yesterday to seal the switch in a dramatic swoop after the Edge Hall Road club had offered the 29-year-old a deal.

The fly half signed a one-year contract to come to Sixways after rejecting Orrell and the chance to return to New Zealand province Waikato, his former club.

Hayes moved to Glasgow six years ago and has become a legend with Scottish supporters for his astonishing kicking power. He became the first player to make 100 appearances for Glasgow and the first to reach 1,000 points for the club, scoring 1,183 points from 121 games.

However, with Glasgow now looking to make wholesale changes, Worcester made their intentions clear, stealing a march on Orrell and eventually sealing Hayes' signature.

Worcester last week captured Drew Hickey from the Lancashire side to weaken their promotion campaign and the Hayes signing will be another blow to Ross Reynolds' hopes of a credible National One title tilt.

"He's a player capable of making a very big impact at Worcester," said Brain. "We are very pleased to get him because he has the ability to be one of the best fly halves ever to wear the Worcester number 10 shirt. Tommy is a very good all-round player. He's intelligent, reads the game well, can distribute well and has a massive boot.

"Certainly there was an offer from Orrell. It was late in the day but we wanted to make sure he came to Worcester."

Hayes will become Worcester's second overseas player alongside South African Werner Swanepoel but is expected to be granted residency soon after fulfilling the time period for staying in the UK.

Brain cannot wait to see the former Cook Island international in action. "I think he could be a real crowd favourite at Sixways," he said.

"He's not a big name but I think if you ask anyone who has ever played against him, they will tell you how good he is."