December 2017

Christmas Message from the RNRU Chairman

more
Christmas Message from the RNRU Chairman

We held our Annual Meeting for Member Clubs at HMS Temeraire at the end of November.  Here members of the Executive Committee presented a round-up of activity over the past year and answered questions from member clubs.  I remarked to our President, Admiral Ben Key, at the end of the meeting that this was probably the most interactive and informative AGM of my tenure as Chairman and I was delighted with the contributions made which will see Navy Rugby continue to go from strength to strength.  During the meeting my successor as Chairman of the RNRU, Commander Andy Kellett, was formally nominated and accepted.  A former Senior XV player and Director of Rugby, with a ...

Read more

RNRU appoint new Head Coach for the Senior XV – Dave Pascoe

more
RNRU appoint new Head Coach for the Senior XV – Dave Pascoe

Pascoe has played rugby for the Royal Navy since 2000, and has been the mainstay of the side ever since.  Always the first name on the team list as a player and a captain, he has been fortunate to lift the Babcock Inter-Service Cup on two occasions.  The end of the 2015/16 season should have marked the end of an era for the man from Cornwall as he was expected to bow out of the playing side of the sport to take up the new challenge of coaching.  Most of that came to pass until he was required to pull on his boots again when a sequence of unfortunate events led to a dearth of scrum halves, so Paco found himself on the bench and finally back on the pitch against Hampshire RF...

Read more

Charities are the winners

more
Charities are the winners

The Royal Navy Rugby Union President's XV paid their annual visit to the home of Petersfield Rugby Club for the third charity fundraiser on Tuesday 12 December.  Unlike the previous years the visibility was not impaired by heavy rain or fog, it was a crisp, clear evening for the first outing of the President's XV this season.   The format was the same as previous years with Wendy and her clubhouse team cooking up a pre-match feast before the excitement of the 'Heads and Tails' event to raise additional money for the two charities, the Royal Navy and Royal Marines charity and the Mayor of Petersfield's official charity the Rosemary Foundation Hospice at Home.  A total of &...

Read more

Royal Navy Rugby Union welcome new Life Members

more
Royal Navy Rugby Union welcome new Life Members

A former President of the Royal Navy Rugby Union (2007-2010), Neil Morisetti was appointed as the first Chairman of the Board of Trustees in 2013. Under his strong leadership he has improved all aspects of our off-field management through a robust governance mechanism that provides a secure foundation on which to build the future. During his tenure he has been instrumental in ensuring full compliance with the Charity Commission regulations which resulted in the Union becoming an Incorporated Company and latterly, the establishment of a separate trading fund, Navy Rugby Limited in 2016. There is no doubt that without his personal drive, management, planning and guidance the RNRU would not...

Read more

Record breaking Royal Navy retain U23 Title

more
Record breaking Royal Navy retain U23 Title

The final match of U23 Inter service competition was contested on a cold November evening at Burnaby Road.  With both the Army and the Navy having already beaten the RAF, this match would decide who would win the competition. The Navy were competing to win the trophy for a record breaking third successive year, whilst the Army were looking to cause an upset. In the first quarter the teams were evenly matched. Both sides made handling errors and conceded a number of penalties, although within 7 minutes the Navy had to mount a resilient defence to prevent the Army from scoring the first try of the match. The Navy’s first opportunity to get onto the scoreboard was as a result of...

Read more