Passing on his knowledge to the Senior Service’s young forwards will be Sam Matavesi, who has been appointed as Forwards Coach. A title-winner in England (with Northampton) and in France (with Toulouse) and a holder of 40 international caps with Fiji across two Rugby World Cups, Matavesi recently signed with Camborne to return to his native Cornwall following a season at Lyon.
Matavesi will be assisted by Ed Pascoe, a veteran of 25 Navy Senior caps and professional clubs, including Cornish Pirates.
Leading the Under-23 coaches will be Dec Johnson, who steps up from leading the RNRU Academy and being a part of the Senior Men’s XV which regained the Inter Service Championship crown earlier this year.
In the red corner will be Junior Bulumakau, the new Head Coach of the Army’s Under-23, assisted by Semesa Rokoduguni, Nathaneal Titchard-Jones, and Peter Austin.
Winner of 18 Senior caps and a Scotland Sevens international, Bulumakau played for Glasgow, Doncaster and Coventry in an extensive professional career. Since retiring from playing the former Twickenham try-scoring winger has turned his hand to coaching, including at Caledonia Reds, winning back-to-back Merit League 2 titles with the Infantry, and as Senior Attack Coach in the Red Shirts’ Inter Service Championship title-winning campaign in 2024.
Rokoduguni has been putting Army Rugby into the wider sporting consciousness for more than a decade. A fan favourite at Bath, who he represented for 10 years, Rokoduguni – who will be the Under-23s’ Backs Coach – won four England caps and is currently at Championship outfit Doncaster Knights, who he signed for after two seasons in France with Montauban.
Titchard-Jones, the new Forwards Coach, has more than 25 Army Senior caps and a club history which includes spells at Chinnor, Rams, Birmingham Moseley and Coventry.
Assistant Forwards Coach will be Austin, another Army Senior veteran who has captained the Red Shirts for the past two seasons and signed for Rams ahead of the upcoming National League 1 campaign.
Bill Tiko returns as Assistant Backs Coach from the 2024 set-up.
The Under-23 Inter Service Championship will be played in the pre-Christmas period.