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Mike Anthony will join Premier League club Brighton next month after 14 years with New Zealand Rugby New Zealand's high performance chief Mike Anthony is switching from rugby union to football to join Premier League side Brighton. Anthony will join the club next month as the club's first head of player development and high performance in what they feel is an innovative move focused on culture and mentality. Anthony has 25 years' experience in sport, including four years with rugby union side Gloucester. However, he has made his name with New Zealand Rugby, where he has spent 14 years in a variety of senior performance roles. Anthony's key attributes lie in the areas of strength and conditioning, performance science, player development and elite culture building, At Brighton, he will work with sporting director Jason Ayto, technical director Mike Cave and men's head coach Fabian Hurzeler with the aim of improving and sustaining performance in the men's first team. Brighton are currently in their ninth consecutive top-flight season and two years ago played European football for the first time. "Mike's track record within one of world sport's most successful high‑performance systems speaks for itself, " said sporting director Jason Ayto. "He has an exceptional ability to build environments where players, coaches and teams can thrive, and his expertise will strengthen every part of our performance structure. We're excited for him to get started. " Latest Brighton news, analysis and fan views Ask about Brighton - what do you want to know? Carrick favourite for Man Utd caretaker role Are fans being turned off multi-club ownership model? Man City news conference: Guardiola on Semenyo, team news and EFL Cup semi-final The Night Manager is back and the heat is on Writer, Jesse Armstrong, shares his desert island tracks The nightly lives of four bickering vampires How a Nasa-designed swimsuit rocked the 2008 Olympics Are fans being turned off multi-club ownership model? 'Did that really happen? ' - Macclesfield fancy another Premier League test Which players could England turn to for 2027 Ashes? Non-league Macclesfield stun FA Cup holders Crystal Palace. Video Non-league Macclesfield stun FA Cup holders Crystal Palace Brosnan, Prince Naseem and the embrace that never happened Wrexham shock Forest in shootout after six-goal thriller. Video Wrexham shock Forest in shootout after six-goal thriller Why Man City have signed 'extraordinary' Semenyo 'Whoever signed off England's tour has to go' - Agnew column A warrior touched by tragedy - Terry Yorath obituary From Aronimink to Zalatoris - an A-Z of golf in 2026 Sporting highlights to look forward to in 2026 Copyright © 2026 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.