Before the famous showdown with the Royal Navy at Twickenham Stadium, the British Army clash with the Royal Air Force this weekend. Gloucester Rugby’s Kingsholm Stadium will host the double header of men’s and women’s action, with a few famous faces also set to run out for the services.
The women’s match is on first, kicking off the action at Kingsholm Stadium at ‘1100 hours’. There is an instantly recognisable name in the RAF’s front row, as Red Roses star Amy Cokayne leads the pack from the front. The 26-year-old has been a mainstay in Simon Middleton’s England squad since 2015, and has scored 20 tries in 71 matches.
The Army Women’s captain has also achieved England caps, as Jade Mullen will be taking the reigns for her second year as Captain. The centre is a former star of the England Women’s 7s set-up, and made a brief transition to 15s, for nine Red Roses caps.
The Army Women have historically dominated the fixture, with the RAF Women unable to score a single point on their opponents from 2005-2009. However now the fixture has become a more level playing field, as the RAF Women beat the Army for the first time in 2019, after a history making 23-14 triumph.
The last meeting between the Army and RAF Women’s sides, saw the British Army run out victorious. They secured a 24-10 victory over the Air Force, in last season’s inter-services at Kingsholm Stadium. This is lining up to be an exciting opener to the day’s action in Gloucester, and is once again all to play for.
BRITISH ARMY WOMEN’S LINE-UP
15. Louise Dodd 14. Courney Pursglove 13. Jade Mullen (C) 12. Amy Carr 11. Charlotte Tweedle 10. Millie Williams 9. Charlie Morgan 1. Sarah Batley 2. Rae Metters 3. Natalie Lewis 4. Colette Broome 5. Heidi Silcox 6. Chantelle Miller 7. Bethan Dainton 8. Sally Bellhouse
16. India King 17. Holly Beacom 18. Marriette Claassens 19. Lauren Brooks 20. Anneka Willis 21. Manuqalo Komaitai 22. Hannah Gilmour 23. Jess McAuley
ROYAL AIR FORCE WOMENS LINE-UP:
15. Nicole Burger 14. Chelcey Greasley 13. Orla Proctor 12. Rebecca DeFilippo 11. Carys Williams-Morris 10. Sarah Graham 9. Lucy Nye (C) 1. Elise Fletcher 2. Amy Cokayne 3. Yasmin Suer 4. Emma Tadman 5. Dani Scarr 6. Annie Forbes 7. Charlie Murray 8. Kat Robinson
16. Lou Langton 17. Natalie Knott 18. Daniker Willmore 19. Beckie Faulds 20. Rebecca Piddlesden 21. Jenna-Lea Hughes 22. Georgia Lang 23. Kim Grundy
The Men’s Army v RAF Match immediately follows proceedings, with a Kick Off time of 15:15 at Kingsholm. The Cherry and Whites’ stadium will play host to the famous all-red kit of the Army, and the ‘sky blue’ RAF men’s team.
This match is the last stop for the British Army, ahead of their historical services clash with the Royal Navy at Twickenham Stadium, yet the RAF will see this as the perfect opportunity to spoil the road to ‘HQ’, with a potential upset on the cards.
The fierce rivalry between these two sets of servicemen, dates back to 1920, when the Army first recorded a 21-9 victory over the RAF. This fixture has been anything but one-sided in recent years, with both sides sharing three wins each in the past six encounters. The Air Force last beat the Army in 2018, as they recorded an nail-biting one point win, winning 20-19.
This 103 year history will once again be reignited, after the Army secured victory last time around. A 35-20 triumph last season saw the Army run away with the match, ahead of retaining the Babcock Trophy at Twickenham, as 2022 inter-services Champions.
The Army have a decorated squad of international representatives, including William Reeve (Kenya), and Cameron McDonald (England and Scotland). The Army will be without Semesa Rokoduguni this year, as the 35-year-old has stepped aside for the next generation of talented Army players.
BRITISH ARMY MEN’S LINE-UP
15. William Reeve 14. Cameron McDonald 13. Vereimi Qorowale 12. Giles Bromley-Martin 11. Connor O’Reilly 10. Owain Davies 9. Alexander Gliksten 1. Nathanael Tichard-Jones 2. Peter Austin 3. Gareth Smith 4. Josaia Visei 5. Koroinivuku Vereti 6. Stu Cross (C) 7. Samuel Ackers 8. Senitiki Nayalo
16. Joe Brown 17. Aidan Gill 18. Scott Westwood 19. Viliame Kotobalavu 20. Ifereimi Boladau 21. Mikey McDonald 22. Jack Johnson 23. Frank Kelly
ROYAL AIR FORCE MEN’S LINE-UP
15. Mark Williams 14. Llyod Owen 13. Ryan Crowley 12. Will Lamont 11. Toby Evans (VC) 10. Ryan Pugh 9. Joe Parkin 1. Dave Manning 2. James Roberts 3. Jonathan Taylor 4. Alex Hayton 5. Harry Johnson 6. Zack Taylor 7. Sam Sheppard 8. Isaac Norton (C)
16. Chris Williams 17. Zach Clarke 18. Matt Harris 19. Connor Morris 20. Sam Breeze 21. Jordan Oatley 22. Luke Riddell 23. Kieron Prescott