2026/27 Previews: National Two West
For the second year running, Taunton Titans (who finished fourth last term), will sound the horn on the National Two West season
©Gary Brown
When two of last season’s leading sides meet on opening weekend, it is hard to ignore the potential for that clash to set the tone for the long campaign ahead.
With Hinckley hosting Luctonians in Round One, the sides who finished third and second respectively will lock horns straight away after both pushed hard for a top-two finish in 2025/26.
In the end, it was Lucs who secured an excellent second place behind eventual champions Camborne, but Rob Lewis and George Thomas’ side were overwhelmed at the first hurdle of the play-offs, losing 60-15 to Birmingham Moseley.
However, there is plenty of encouragement to take from Thomas’ comments this week, with the head coach saying he feels this particular group is ‘hitting their peak’ in terms of their age profile. That cohesion could prove valuable.
For Hinckley, having equalled the highest finish in the club’s history last term, the Midlands club will be keen to build on that achievement.
A run of 11 straight wins, including a 36-0 victory over Luctonians, propelled Hinckley into third and put pressure on Lucs, but they ultimately finished just two points behind.
There has been change at Leicester Road over the summer, with head coach Emyr Lewis moving to Syston and Alex White making the move in the opposite direction.
White has also brought talented No.8 Ed James with him, while experienced hooker Sam McNulty and winger Travis Bennett-Allcock (both from Birmingham Moseley) should complement the quality already within the squad.
Clifton are the side dropping down from National One, but their relegation was put firmly into perspective following the death of Director of Rugby Matt Salter in March.
The Lavender and Blacks continued to battle bravely on the pitch but were ultimately unable to avoid the drop into National Two West, a league they won in 2024/25.
Coaches Luke Cozens and Ian Grieve have been able to retain much of last season’s squad, so could Clifton make an immediate return?
They begin the new campaign with a trip to Cinderford, who finished fifth last term.
Clive Stuart-Smith’s side have lost experience in the form of Joe Mullis and Nathan Taylor, but there remains an exciting crop of players at Bell Sports and Rugby Park.
The National Two West campaign - and indeed the whole of the National League Rugby season - begins on Friday night, with Taunton Titans taking on newly promoted Devonport Services at the Summerfield Stadium.
This is the second season in a row that Taunton have sounded the horn on a new campaign, but Tony Yapp’s side will be determined to achieve a better outcome than last year, when they lost 37-35 to Exeter University.
There are reasons for Titans supporters to feel optimistic.
After winning just three of their opening nine games in 2025/26, Taunton turned their form around to finish fourth, and a host of re-signings - including last season’s leading points scorer Tom Putt - have been supplemented by the arrivals of Gabe Mead and Ben Parsons from Plymouth Albion and Connor Vickery from Hornets.
Devonport Services, meanwhile, have made an instant return to the division following relegation in 2024/25.
Ben Russell’s side won Regional 1 South West and will now be hoping to make a greater impact in National Two West this time around.
The fully amateur side won just four times during their previous campaign at Level Four, but appear to have added greater depth ahead of their latest foray into National League Rugby.
Like Devonport Services, Bournville bounced back into National Two West at the first attempt, winning Regional 1 Midlands.
Alex Grove’s side begin the new season on the road at Redruth, and much of the Chocos’ squad do have experience of playing at this level two seasons ago. That might be something they lean on.
A tasty South-West derby also lights up the opening weekend, with Hornets hosting Old Redcliffians at The Nest.
Hornets finished sixth last season, while Old Reds ended in eighth and just outside the top half following a run of seven wins from their final 11 matches.
That run included a 45-19 victory over Hornets at Scotland Lane, but when these two sides meet, there is rarely a shortage of fireworks.
There is also an all-Devon affair in Round One, with Exeter University entertaining Barnstaple.
The Students found themselves in the relegation play-off last season, but Gareth Elliott’s side secured their National Two status with a convincing 64-10 victory over Stourbridge.
With the new BUCS Super Rugby season beginning in just under three weeks, it will be interesting to see what resources Exeter have at their disposal as they prepare to juggle both competitions once again.
As for Barnstaple, they were deservedly one of last season’s surprise packages, winning nine of their first 12 games before falling away in the second half of the campaign.
Nevertheless, there were plenty of positives for the Chiefs to take into this new season.
And elsewhere on opening Saturday, Lymm host Loughborough Students at Crouchley Lane.
With Director of Rugby Adam Fletcher stepping down at the end of last season following a wonderful career, head coach Andy Davies has stepped into the role, with Mark Williams and Tom Bray joining his backroom staff.
Lymm finished ninth last season but certainly have the quality within their squad to climb the division, with Williams saying during the week that they have the capability to challenge towards the top three or four.
For Loughborough Students, relegation appeared to have been confirmed on the final day of the National Two West season before the club were subsequently reinstated at the start of June.
Following the decision to allocate Macclesfield and Lymm into National Two West in accordance with the geographical criteria, Macclesfield confirmed they would not compete in the division and would instead play in Regional 1 North West this season.
That resulted in Loughborough being reinstated to maintain a 14-team league structure, with Martin Webdale’s side now preparing to compete in National League Rugby for a 19th season.
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