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St Jacques Vikings Rugby Club have confirmed that in line with the Rugby Football Union’s restructure of the mens game, including the acceptance of club 2nd XV’s into the English Club Championship, their application to rejoin the main league structure has been accepted.
The Vikings have competed in The Shield for the past two competitive seasons - a high-level competition for 2nd XV’s from senior clubs at Championship and National level.
From next season, the Vikings will play in the newly-created Counties Three - Hampshire division, and will face many of the clubs which previously played in the Hampshire Solent league, where the club made its debut in the English leagues.
The Rugby Football Union has recognised the island's distinctive circumstances and will allow the Vikings and Guernsey Raiders to share players with no restrictions on selection. This is also made possible by the strong relationship between the two clubs.
The Vikings will now have the opportunity to climb the national league ladder, starting at level nine.
Pictured: The Vikings in action against Bournemouth. Credit: Martin Gray.
Speaking on announcement of the news, St Jacques Chairman, Ian Hackeson, said: “We are very pleased that the RFU have accepted our application to rejoin the men's league pyramid next season.
“Whilst competing in the Shield for the past few years has been great for us, the opportunity for the club and our players to develop and find our level in the main leagues was too great to turn down.
“We can now continue to work with the Raiders to develop rugby players in Guernsey and provide a real springboard to competing in the National Leagues.
“I want to thank all those at the Raiders, Academy, the RFU and at Hampshire that helped make this huge opportunity happen, and I’d like to extend my thanks to David Booth and Steve Appleby at the Shield for their support over these past few years.”
Fixtures for next season will be announced in June.
These are the clubs the Vikings will play next season:
Andover Two, Fareham Heathens, Gosport & Fareham, Havant Three, Isle of Wight, Locksheath Pumas, Overton, Portsmouth Two, Romsey, Winchester Two and Ventnor.
Pictured (top): St Jacques Vikings. Credit: Martin Gray.
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