Re-signings Latest

You can breathe a sigh of relief if you were concerned that relegation from National League One might have seen an exodus of playing talent from Taunton Titans. It was inevitable that one or two favourites would seek out a team in the third tier and Frankie Dart has signed for Plymouth Albion whilst Brian NCube has joined Dings. However, a raft of experienced Titans have committed to taking the club back at the first attempt – and, having won their last four league fixtures, there’s little doubt that Somerset’s finest were capable of mixing it at the top of the National Leagues structure.

The first re-signings to be announced were the back-row trinity of Charlie Wright, Ratu Vakalutukali and Sam Prior. Wright, the former Exeter Chief, has been free-scoring and was tied with Titans’ Noah Fenton in 3^rdplace on the divisional top try scorers list with 19 for the season. Vakalutakali, known as ‘Toots’, has been available much more often since his Royal Marines commitments saw him posted to Lympstone in a training capacity. The Fijian-born favourite also represents Royal Navy. Sam ‘Turbo’ Prior had been threatening retirement but the lure of reaching a double century of Titans appearances was too great for the giant Number 8 to resist.

In the front row there is a return for popular prop, Will Vaughan, who played for the juniors at Taunton before tasting Premiership and European rugby with Bath. His fellow prop, Ollie Schuster-Wood, has progressed from the promotion-winning Warriors side to take his first steps in a Titans jersey. In the middle of the scrum, former Tongan international hooker Elvis Taione, is returning with his wealth of playing experience in Super Rugby, Premiership and United Rugby Championship.

Sam Leworthy and Ben Oliphant-Thompson play in the second row and bring nous to the Titans line-out as they compete for the National League Two West title. Both work on the land in Devon by day; Leworthy is a farmer in North Devon whilst OT is a viticulteur near Exeter. Such familiar faces are sure to strengthen Taunton’s efforts to win promotion back to National One at the first attempt.

Watch this space for more news of re-signings and new signings in the weeks to come.

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