Quartet of Chiefs available to Cornish Pirates

A four-strong group of Exeter Chiefs players will spend the 2026/27 season dual-registered with Elior Champ Rugby side Cornish Pirates to aid their individual development.

Centre Nic Allison, lock Oscar Beckerleg, fly-half Ben Coen, and prop Isaac Godfrey will all spend time at Pirates’s Penzance base throughout the season as a continuation of the long and fruitful relationship between the two clubs.

Allison and Godfrey will be available for selection in round one of the second-tier competition this weekend, while Beckerleg and Coen will remain with Chiefs for the PREM Rugby Cup block.

Chiefs director of rugby Rob Baxter said: “This is another representation of the great relationship we have with Cornish Pirates. The opportunity for these four lads to play regular, high-quality Champ rugby, when they’re not involved in games with us, is invaluable.

“They’ve all been involved in different aspects of our pre-season programme, but the important thing for us now is that they get to continue playing rugby at as high of a level as we can get for them and on a regular basis. That’s clearly what develops players the quickest and develops them to the best of their abilities.

“By involving them with Pirates, we know they’ll receive really good coaching and be given a real opportunity to experience playing rugby around the country and the challenges that that provides for them to grow into the next stages of their rugby journey.”

Beckerleg and Coen have both already received their Chiefs first team debuts, while Allison and Godfrey have featured in friendly matches for the Exeter side in recent seasons.

Pirates kick off their new campaign with the visit of Doncaster Knights to the Mennaye Field this Sunday, 13 September at 16:00.