The St Peter team launch their new season with a friendly against high-flying English side Bradford and Bingley at St Peter a week tomorrow.
It’s the first of two warm-up matches – they play Chichester the following week – as they prepare for a campaign which they hope will end with promotion from London South West Division III.
The ‘Bees’ also have a promotion agenda – they are aiming to join the big boys of the Zurich Premiership in record time.
Last season they were crowned champions of North Division I and won the Powergen Intermediate Cup at Twickenham.
This term they will run out in Division III of National League North.
It was their second successive promotion in Cooke’s two years at the helm after zooming out of North East Division II, scoring over 1,000 points in the process.
Last season Tongan international No 8 Chris Hala’uifa topped the scoring with 27 tries – at one time the club were able to call on three Tongan internationals, an Australian and a New Zealander.
Now they are just three steps away from the top flight and have recruited no less than eight new players to spearhead a bid for yet another title – including Tongan Under-21 international Noemani Tonga, towering 6 ft 8 in, 20-stone Springbok back row Bloues Volschenk and Brabbis Koenn, another 20-stoner who will all be in Jersey.
They will also be bringing former Bradford Bulls winger Tevika Vaikona, who has now forsaken Superleague in favour of union, former Valencia and Spain player Richard Westron and England Under-21 centre Stuart Dixon plus eight Yorkshire county players.
Jersey face Chichester from London South East Division III the following Saturday before their first league match at Weybridge Vandals on 4 September.
Then, the following Wednesday, they will meet the RAF as part of the club’s 125th anniversary celebrations.
Farnham, also away, are the next League opposition with Andover – relegated to SW III this season and regarded as a major obstacle to Jersey’s title ambitions – line up for a clash at St Peter on 25 September.
Said Jersey coach Dai Burton: ‘Promotion will depend on the availability of the players and the sort of start we get – this year we’ve got a commitment from a number of key players that they’ll be around and that’s great.
Certainly if everyone’s available we’ve got one of the best sides in the division.’ The Jersey squad has been boosted by the return of Roger Quirk after a season away from the Island and the emergence of young talent like back row player Matt Banahan.
They have also recruited winger Richard Finch from United Banks.
Commented club chairman Chris Scott: ‘Our ambition is to win the league and matches like this pre-season should help us get a good start – last year we had no friendlies before the season and that and other factors contributed to our poor start.’ The match and the pre-match lunch are being sponsored by JPL Estates.
