YORK City Knights have made their first signing of the off-season after bringing in former Wakefield Trinity captain and England international forward Danny Kirmond ahead of the 2021 season.

Kirmond had been with hometown club Wakefield since 2012, serving as the club’s skipper between midway through that season until the 2019 campaign.

During that time, the second-row established himself as a firm fans favourite, having been named in the 2013 Super League Dream Team, helping the club win the 2015 Million Pound Game and playing in the Trinity sides which then secured three consecutive finishes in the Super 8s between 2016 and 2018.

Formerly of Featherstone Rovers and Huddersfield Giants, the 34-year-old will bring masses of experience to the Knights squad, with over 300 career appearances to his name, including one cap for England in 2012.

Knights head coach James Ford said: “It’s great to be in the position to bring Danny to the club and I’d like to acknowledge the role our supporters and sponsors played in being able to get this complete.

“Danny will bring a significant amount of experience and leadership which I’m confident will help push up the standards of our preparations.

“Danny runs good lines on the edge and I’m confident he’ll cause our opponents some stress out there.

“I’m really looking forwards to working with Danny and we’re all confident he’ll help us progress towards our goals for 2021.”

Kirmond added: “First of all I’m delighted to be joining York for next season, obviously being at Wakefield for so long, the next step had to be the right challenge for me. Having spoke to Fordy a couple of times his commitment and enthusiasm were immediately infectious and I knew York was the place I wanted to be!

“I’d like to thank James and Jon for this amazing opportunity to be a part of a club with amazing facilities and a desire to succeed, not to mention being a part of the wonderful city that is York!

“I’m really looking forward to meeting all the team, staff and of course the fans and having a successful 2021 campaign.”