The Championship Clubs have recently been issued with a deadline by the RFU to accept certain terms or effectively be removed from the current professional game structure.  After nearly two years of discussion, which have been characterised by the RFU agreeing positions, sometimes unilaterally or in separate negotiations on the Professional Game Partnership (PGP) – from which we have been excluded – we have now been presented with a proposition which we cannot accept as to do so would risk potential bankruptcy for Championship clubs and would also further isolate the Premiership to the d ..read more

Three of Coventry Rugby’s rising stars have been confirmed as being part of Alex Rae’s squad for the 2024/25 Championship campaign. Back-rower Chester Owen (above), fly-half/centre Theo Mannion and scrum-half Fin Ogden will all remain at the Butts Park Arena for at least another 12 months. Mannion has featured from the bench in the latter stages of the season and kicked some conversions against England Under-20s in the recent 150th anniversary match. Ogden has also had limited opportunities behind Will Chudley, Will Lane and Toby Venner but the 20-year-old has been seen five times in blue-and ..read more

Coventry Rugby have confirmed three further members of the 2023/24 squad will remain at the club for another 12 months. Props Vilikese Nairau and Eliot Salt plus scrum-half Will Lane have all signed on the dotted line to  be part of next season’s Championship campaign. After joining Cov midway through the current season Nairau has quickly become a popular figure with the Butts Park Arena faithful. The powerful Fiji U20’s representative who is able to play on both sides of the scrum has made a handful of appearances for his first English club. Lane who has been at the BPA since 2022 and to ..read more

Coventry Rugby have an outstanding recent record of developing talented-but-unproven youngsters into quality rugby players in recent years. And Charlie Robson, Steff Davies (pictured above) and Dan Green have been revealed as the latest three hopefuls to be added to Alex Rae’s Butts Park Arena squad ahead of Cov’s assault on the 2024/25 season. Pacy winger Robson has been an important part of Berkshire-based club Rams’ National One success over consecutive seasons during which they have finished as runners-up to Cambridge and Chinnor. He is also currently part of England Sevens training camps ..read more

A familiar face returns to the Butts Park Arena next season following Coventry’s signing on a multi-year deal of Cornish Pirates prop Matt Johnson. The 26-year-old former Exeter tight-head played eight loan games for the blue-and-whites in 2021/22, including the latter stages of the RFU Cup competition in which Cov eventually finished as runners-up. After departing Sandy Park when his academy contract ended, Johnson moved further South West and has since played 46 times for the Penzance-based Pirates including a bench appearance when Cov visited in early May. Prior to moving to Exeter for univ ..read more

Munster flanker Daniel Okeke has become the latest player to join Coventry Rugby’s squad for the 2024/25 season. The 22-year-old flanker arrives at the Butts Park Arena having made three senior appearances for the Thomond Park-based province including a Champions Cup outing. The Limerick-born back-rower who has spent much of his career with All-Ireland League outfit Shannon RFC where he started playing as a 17-year-old, joined Munster’s academy prior to the start of the 2021/22 season. Okeke has also won international honours for Ireland at under-20 level and this season has also been part of ..read more

Impressive centre Tom Hitchcock and powerful second row Rhys Anstey have become Coventry Rugby players for 2024/25. Both players became popular figures at the Butts Park Arena during the season just finished while on loan from Ealing. And as a result head coach Alex Rae has moved quickly to sign them on permanent deals ahead of Cov’s 2024/25 Championship campaign. Welsh lock Anstey who originally moved across the Severn from Cardiff to join Ealing has made 20 appearances for Coventry this season. The 22-year-old said the decision to sign a Coventry contract was an easy one. “All the boys and t ..read more

Led by a hat-trick from leading try-scorer Jimmy Martin Coventry Rugby brought the curtain down on their season with an entertaining win over England Under-20s in a 150th anniversary celebration match. The hosts eventually scored eight tries to England’s six, but with retirement-bound Will Chudley very much to the fore the damage was done during a first half which they closed with a thumping 35-nil lead. The Under-20s began to gel in a second period which they ‘won’ 38-19 and head to next month’s World Cup with plenty of optimism and the best wishes of everyone at the Butts Park Arena. An exce ..read more

Retirement-bound Will Chudley bids a fond farewell to the Butts Park Arena tomorrow when he takes his final bow in Cov’s 150th anniversary match against England Under-20s (3pm kick off). Chudley teams up with regular half-back partner Pat Pellegrini against an England side that is preparing for the next World Cup which is scheduled for South Africa in June and July. A number of other players will also make their final appearances in blue-and-white and it is hoped those present will stay after the game to help the club say thank-you and goodbye through the presentation of framed shirts. Full ba ..read more

Coventry Rugby have bulked up their pack ahead of the 2024/25 season with the signing of promising 21-year-old prop Jevaughn Warren. The former Saracens academy loose-head who tips the scales at 120 kg has spent much of recent seasons playing for National One Bishop’s Stortford and Cov’s Championship rivals Ampthill on a dual-registered basis. Having previously started his rugby life at Letchworth RFC, Warren got involved with the Hertfordshire set-up as a teenager before joining Sarries and enjoying a loan spell with London One North Harpenden during which he also represented England under-20 ..read more