(Reuters) - Leicester Tigers have appointed caretaker boss Geordan Murphy as their new head coach, the Premiership club said on Tuesday.
Murphy, 40, took charge of the team on an interim basis in September after head coach Matt O'Connor left following a 40-6 drubbing at Exeter in their season opener.
"It is a huge honour to be asked to be head coach at a club I know so well," Murphy, who joined the club as a player in 1997, said in a statement.
The eight-time Premiership champion and double European Cup winner scored 93 tries in 322 games for Tigers before taking up a role on their coaching staff in 2013.
"This club means a lot to me, I've been here a long time and we all want to enjoy success with the Tigers," Murphy added.
Leicester are eighth in the Premiership standings after three victories from nine matches.
"We've had a challenging start and we're working hard to improve performances and results, but this is also the start of a journey for this coaching team and playing group," Murphy said.
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
