Fijian speedster leading the way
Ben Jaycock reports on the comings and goings in England's second tier ahead of the new season which kicks off next month
FORMER Bath and England wing Semesa Rokoduguni is the headline signing in the Championship. Doncaster Knights welcome the Fijian-born Army servant, who played for Bath across 10 seasons, making 194 appearances and scoring 71 tries.
In 2022, he moved to French D2 side US Montauban and accumulated 45 appearances, racking up 10 tries in the process.
While balancing his rugby with a career in the Army, Rokoduguni holds the Lance Corporal rank and served in Afghanistan. He represented England on four occasions, scoring four times, with his debut being against the All Blacks in the 2014 Autumn Internationals and his last against Samoa in 2017.
Head coach Joe Ford said: “His experience and knowledge of the game will certainly boost the squad both on and off the pitch. He's an incredible player and we are so excited to introduce him to the rest of the boys.”
Rokoduguni's signing is alongside numerous others with Premiership experience as prop Logovi'i Mulipola, below, brings a wealth of top flight nous to Doncaster, having played for Leicester, Newcastle and most recently Saracens, alongside his 33 caps for Samoa.
Bedford Blues have been forced to wave goodbye to talismanic winger Sean French, who is returning to Ireland. French concluded his time in Bedford with 39 tries in 52 appearances and surpassed the 200-point barrier late last season having also added some important kicks off the tee during his time on the field.
Catching the eye of those in the second tier, French was named in The Rugby Paper Dream Team in the last two seasons. His direct replacement is 22-year-old Louis James from Coventry, who adds a huge amount of versatility to Mike Rayer's back division as he is also able to cover full-back and outside centre, and has already made close to 50 appearances in the second tier.
Following a successful spell on loan last season from Fylde, centre Connor Wilkinson has joined Caldy on a permanent deal but is the only new acquisition by Gareth Davies thus far. Club stalwart Rhys Hayes has moved on to become head coach of National Two North side Chester after making 167 appearances and scoring 230 points in the last seven seasons.
Director of rugby Davies said: “Rhys has been on a wild journey with the club with us since we first got promoted to National One then stuck with us in National Two and National One again and has proved his quality at both 15 and 10 in the Championship for the last two years. A relentless competitor and highly talented individual he will be missed in the squad. A workaholic mentality that has seen him miss very little rugby in the last two years.”
Chris Pilgrim has retired but Davies has re-signed a large bulk of his squad that have held its own since joining the Championship in 2022.
Cambridge have been one of the busiest sides in the division with 11 new players, including a double swoop of front rowers from Championship rivals Ampthill and Nottingham.
Prop Zac Nearchou joins from Ampthill and returns to Cambridge following a season on loan in National One from Wasps. The 23-year-old can also operate at hooker and has represented England at U18 and U19 levels. He turned out 29 times for Ampthill – nine times last season, scoring twice.
Fellow prop Jake Bridges arrives from Nottingham, having previously represented Northampton Saints Academy. The 22-year-old also made over 25 appearances for Coventry. Kayde Sylvester returns to his boyhood club Cambridge from Premiership winners Northampton. The 6ft 6in, 22-year-old lock/ back row made his first Saints appearance in 2021/22, debuting against London Irish in the Premiership Cup and leaves Franklin's Gardens with seven appearances and one try. Nick Easter's Chinnor enter the Championship for the first time and haven't rested on their laurels this summer, bringing in five new players.
Former 16-time Edinburgh fly-half Nathan Chamberlain arrives from Hartpury University but Easter is also excited about linking up with his other new 10 from his time in the North East, 22-yearold Callum Prescoe.
Easter said: “Callum joins from DMP where he has been their stand-out player for two seasons. I have worked with Callum before at Newcastle Falcons and am excited to help him realise his talent further. A real running threat he also kicks goals to add to his game.”
Cornish Pirates have lost four players to retirement but look to be building a strong squad with top flight experience.
Dual registered with Exeter these past two seasons, winger Arthur Relton has permanently signed after the former England U20s player made 27 appearances for the club and scored 13 tries.
Prop James French bolsters the front row and provides a wealth of experience for a player of just 25. He competed for Ireland in the 2018 Six Nations U20s Championship, in the same year he joined Munster's academy before being promoted to the senior squad on a one-year contract ahead of the 2021-22 season. He made his senior debut away against Wasps in the Champions Cup and then, after signing a two-year contract extension in January 2022, he signed for Ulster, from where he joins.
Lock Charlie Rice, who last season made one appearance for the Pirates when on a short-term loan from Bristol Bears, has put pen to paper on a fulltime contract with the Pirates for the 2024-25 campaign. Aged 21, Rice is a former England U18s and 20s forward, who has previously played for Hartpury in the Championship.
Prop Billy Keast, 27, has joined on a dual registered deal from Exeter, along with Iwan Jenkins – who returns to the Mennaye for a second consecutive year having been one of the dozen dual-registered last season – Sol Moody, Hallam Chapman, Chester Ribbons, and Charlie McCraig.
Keast has made 50 appearances for the Chiefs having represented England at U18, 19, and 20s level.
Coventry have lost last year's player of the year, centre Will Wand to Leicester Tigers and supporters' player of the year, Tonga's World Cup fly-half Pat Pellegrini to Super Rugby's Moana Pasifika. Will Chudley has retired but they have replaced the former Bath nine with Josh Barton from Newcastle.
Head coach Alex Rae said: “As soon as we knew Will was retiring Josh was the first person we wanted to bring in. He's an infectious character who will be hugely popular with players and the fans. His skillset for a No.9 suits exactly how we want to play the game.”
The back row has been bolstered by 25-year-old flanker Aaron Hinckley joining after appearing in 20 Premiership games during stints at Gloucester, Exeter and Northampton, in addition to playing four times in the Champions Cup.
Championship winners Ealing Trail-finders have waved goodbye to former England international Billy Twelvetrees who has retired and joined Hartpury University as backs and attack coach.
However, Ealing as expected have brought in a number of experienced players as they chase promotion. Prop James Kenny is the standout, joining from Exeter where the 25-year-old made 33 appearances, while winger Ben Harris has joined from Saracens.
London Scottish have welcomed back club legend Mark Bright from Richmond in the role of player-forwards coach. Scottish have also signed seven-cap Wales winger Jonah Holmes, left, from neighbours Ealing. Holmes, 32, who previously scored 24 tries in 45 appearances for Leicester between 2017-20, played for Scottish at U12 level where his rugby career began.
Nottingham's standout signing is 26-year-old scrum-half Toby Venner who arrives with top flight experience from Gloucester and Bristol, as well as time in the Championship with Hartpury, Jersey and Coventry. Head coach Craig Hammond said: “Toby is exactly what our style of rugby needs, he has good ball speed and he's creative with lots of experience.”
Ampthill have chosen not to reveal their signings.
Ampthill
Ins: TBA
Outs: Zac Nearchou, Josh Skelcey, Pete White, Iestyn Rees (all Cambridge), Jevaughn Warren, Oli Morris (both Coventry), Ben Chapman, Morgan Strong (both Doncaster Knights)
Bedford Blues
Ins: Louis James (Coventry), Tommy Herman (Olney), Alfie Garside (Bath University), Rory Ward (Newcastle University), Shay Kerry (Hunter Wildfires), Lucas Titherington (West Harbour Pirates)
Outs: Sean French (released)
Caldy
Ins: Connor Wilkinson (Fylde)
Outs: Rhys Hayes (Chester head coach), Chris Pilgrim (retired)
Cambridge
Ins: Arthur Lennon (RGC), Zac Nearchou, Josh Skelcey, Pete White, Iestyn Rees (all Ampthill), Jake Bridges (Nottingham), Ollie Betteridge, Jack Bartlett (both Coventry), Kayde Sylvester (Northampton Saints), Ruaridh Dawson (Cornish Pirates), Louis Grimoldby (Bedford Blues)
Outs: None
Chinnor
Ins: Nathan Chamberlain (Hartpury University), Lawson Porter (Heriots Blues), Henry Pearson (Gloucester), Harry Dugmore (Ealing Trailfinders), Callum Pascoe (Darlington Mowden Park)
Outs: George Worboys (Ealing Trailfinders)
Cornish Pirates
Ins: Dan Hiscocks (Ealing Trailfinders), Ollie Andrews (Coventry), Cameron Jones (Edinburgh), Arthur Relton (Exeter Chiefs), Iwan Price-
Thomas (Bath University), Matt Cannon, Harry Yates (both on loan from Ealing Trailfinders), James French (Ulster), Charlie Rice (Bristol Bears), Oisin Michel (West Harbour Pirates), Billy Keast, Iwan Jenkins, Sol Moody, Hallam Chapman, Chester Ribbons, Charlie McCraig (all dual registered with Exeter Chiefs)
Outs: Ruaridh Dawson (Cambridge), Steele Barker (Bristol Bears), Will Britton, Marlen Walker, Jack Andrew, Kyle Moyle (all retired), Alex Schwarz (released), Jordan Gott, Josh Williams, Rhys Williams, Ioan Evans, Tom Pittman (all Navy), Matt Johnson (Coventry), Josh Williams (Doncaster Knights)
Coventry
Barton Ins: Josh Barton (Newcastle Falcons), Aaron Hinckley (Northampton Saints), Daf-Rhys Tiueti (Nottingham), Jevaughn Warren, Oli Morris (both Ampthill), Tom Hitchcock, Rhys Anstey (both Ealing Trailfinders), Daniel Okeke (Munster), Matt Johnson (Cornish Pirates), Charlie Robson (Rams), Steff Davies (Cardiff Met), Dan Green (Newport Salop), Jake Henry (on loan from Edinburgh), Liam Richman (Heriots), Tommy Matthews (Hartpury University)
Outs: Louis James (Bedford Blues), Jack Bartlett, Ollie Betteridge (both Cambridge), Ollie Andrews (Cornish Pirates), Will Chudley (retired), Paddy Ryan (USA), Will Wand (Leicester Tigers), Adam Nicol (Ealing Trailfinders), Tobi Wilson (Ealing Trailfinders), Toby Venner (Nottingham), Pat Pellegrini (Moana Pasifica)
Doncaster Knights
Ins: Semesa Rokoduguni (US Montauban), Andrew Turner (Bristol Bears), Josh Williams (Cornish Pirates), Taniela a Ramasibana (USA Perpignan), Ben Chapman (Ampthill), Logovi'i Mulipola, Jasper McGuire (both Saracens), Zach Kerr (Newcastle Falcons)
Outs: Evan Mintern, Andrew Foster, Cam Terry, Charlie Beckett, Karl Garside, Seb Nagle-Taylor, Harrison Courtney, Jack Digby, Tom Doughty, Fyn Brown, Corrie Barrett, Harry Wilson, George Simpson, Joe Margetts, Sam Olver, Billy McBryde, Joe Bedlow, Jack Metcalf, AJ Cant, Aloisi Vereimi (all released), Ehize Ehizode (Ealing Trailfinders)
Ealing Trailfinders
Ins: Jeneiro Wakeham (Stade Francais), Dan Jones (Scarlets), Tyler Bocks (Lions), James Kenny (Exeter Chiefs), Adam Nicol (Coventry), Tomiwa Agobongbon (Loughborough University), George Shaw (Cardiff University), Francis Moore (Saracens), Geordie Irvine (Northampton Saints), Ehize Ehizode (Doncaster Knights), Sam Clark (Newcastle Falcons), George Worboys (Chinnor), Tobi Wilson (Coventry), Sean Lonsdale (Dragons), Michael Stronge (Nottingham), Ben Harris (Saracens)
Outs: Harry Dugmore (Chinnor), Dan Hiscocks (Cornish Pirates), Tom Hitchcock, Rhys Anstey (both Coventry), Billy Twelvetrees (retired), Rhys Anstey, Jordan Burns, James Cordy-Redden, Luke Daniels, Andrew Davidson, Tom Georgiou, James Gibbons, Josh Gillespie, Will Goodrick-Clarke, Richard Hardwick, Pat Howard, Ross Kane, Cian Kelleher, Dan Lancaster, Simon Linsell, Kevin O'Byrne, David O'Connor, Jimmy Roots, Steven Shingler (all released), James Gibbons (Hartpury ry University), Jonah Holmes (London Scottish)Harry Dugmore (Chinnor), Dan Hiscocks (Cornish Pirates), Tom Hitchcock, Rhys Anstey (both
Hartpury University
Ins: James Gibbons (Ealing Trailfinders) Outs: Nathan Chamberlain (Chinnor), Tommy Matthews (Coventry)
London Scottish
Ins: George Morison (Heriots Blues), Ntinga Mpiko, Mark Bright (both Richmond), Jake Spurway (Durham University), Calum Scott (Rams), Tom Wilstead (Rosslyn Park), Alex Wardell (Saracens), Jonah Holmes (Ealing Trailfinders)
Outs: None
nottingham
Ins: Ale Loman (Nottingham University), Gwyn Parks (Ampthill), Toby Venner (Coventry), Matthew Arden (Northampton Saints), Dan Richardson (Leicester Tigers)
Outs: Jake Bridges (Cambridge), Michael Stronge (Ealing Trailfinders)
