Our Men's First XV are busy preparing for their National 1 opener at Darlington Mowden Park on September 3 and we are thrilled to introduce some of our fresh faces.

We are now able to announce seven of our new players, with a couple of them returning for a second spell at Kingsey Road.

We welcome back loosehead prop Josh Pieterse and tighthead Josh McNulty, who played for the Club during the 2019/20 season and have both been at Championship clubs for the past two years. Director of Rugby, Richard Thorpe has also recruited a new hooker, with Reece Marshall, who made 58 appearances for Northampton Saints, signing from the Premiership club as a player-Defence Coach. There is also a new face in the second row, with former Cardiff Blues lock James Down joining our Chinnor Family, having recently lined up for Russian side Lokomotiv Penza.

In the backs, we are pleased to introduce three new players. Two centres have signed on, with Will Blakemore switching codes from London Broncos and former England 7s player Lewis Jones joining from our National 1 counterparts Rosslyn Park. We have also added to our options at ten, with the signing of ex-Hartpury fly-half Tom Price.

Director of Rugby, Richard Thorpe said: “I am pleased to announce the first tranche of our new players for the 2022/23 season. Whilst we carry forward the core of our squad from last year, we have made some strategic recruitments in key positions. The above players have been with us since the beginning of pre-season and have integrated well. I am excited to see them in action in our upcoming friendlies."

PLAYER PROFILES

Will Blakemore
Position: Centre
Weight: 108kg
Height: 6ft
DOB: 20/09/1998
Previous Clubs: London Broncos RL
Occupation: Garden Maintenance at Rectory Homes

James Down
Position: Second Row
Weight: 116kg
Height: 6ft 6ins
DOB: 29/08/1987
Previous Clubs: Lokomotiv Penza, London Welsh, Cardiff Blues
Occupation: Recruiter at Carmichael UK

Lewis Jones
Position: Centre
Weight: 108kg
Height: 6ft 2ins
DOB: 23/07/1995
Previous Clubs: Rosslyn Park, Ealing Trailfinders, Yorkshire Carnegie, England 7s, Northampton Saints
Occupation: Commodities Broker

Reece Marshall
Position: Hooker
Weight: 107kg
Height: 6ft
DOB: 09/09/1994
Previous Clubs: Northampton Saints
Occupation: Assistant Site Manager at Rectory Homes

Josh McNulty
Position: Tighthead Prop
Weight: 124kg
Height: 6ft 3ins
DOB: 24/03/1994
Previous Clubs: Worcester Warriors, Gloucester, Coventry, Nottingham, Harlequins
Occupation: Interior Design Installation

Josh Pieterse
Position: Loosehead Prop
Weight: 115kg
Height: 5ft 11ins
DOB: 11/11/1994
Previous Clubs: Bedford Blues, Doncaster Knights, Chinnor (loan), Ealing Trailfinders
Occupation: Discipline Case Officer at the RFU

Tom Price
Position: Fly-half
Weight: 88kg
Height: 5ft 11ins
DOB: 11/06/2000
Previous Clubs: Dings Crusaders, Hartpury, Cardiff Met University, Cleve
Occupation: Community Rugby Coach