RNRU Royal Navy Rugby Union

Royal Marine Muscian, Edd Pascoe, has been awarded the Royal Navy Rugby Union’s Brian Weeks Memorial Trophy for his performances for the U23 XV. Named after former Navy Rugby Life Member and long standing Chairman of age group rugby in the Royal Navy, the trophy is traditionally presented at the end of the U23 XV Inter Service championship. It is awarded to the player, who in the opinion of the U23 XV coaching staff, has contributed most over the course of the season.

Edd’s season has been characterised by the huge work rate he has shown around the pitch with followers of Navy Rugby regularly seeing him charging clear from a ruck or taking the short pass from the halfback. However, as the season has progressed, his work at the set piece has also significantly improved as he continues to develop into an all-round player. He is the second lock forward to win the Brian Week Trophy and I am sure that Edd will be wishing to emulate the previous winner, Dennis Scotthorne, who was capped at Senior level.

Brian would certainly have appreciated the award, in his memory, going to a Royal Marine Muscian. His time as chairman was characterised by his hands on approach and ensuring that the Royal Navy was able to get its best players on the pitch as often as possible. In the early 90s the Royal Marines Band Service provided the colts with a couple of very talented players but only on the proviso that they were back at Deal, fresh, for Monday morning rehearsals. It was Brian who regularly drove them back from Cornwall and Devon late after the Sunday game to ensure the remit was met. One of them went on to make quite an impact for Navy Rugby, a young winger Spencer ‘Buster’ Brown.

Edd Pascoe has only recently completed his three years of RM musician training and passed out from the RM School of Music in August of this year. The talented trombone player has clearly demonstrated that he is also a very talented rugby player. He will certainly be looking towards finishing his season at Navy Rugby’s showdown with the Army at Twickenham. Competition for a place in the Senior squad will be tough but he must have a realistic chance of making the Combined Services U23 XV.

A worthy winner of the Brian Weeks Memorial Trophy, Edd Pascoe is a name that I am sure we will hear much more off.

Previous winners of the Brian Weeks Memorial Trophy can be viewed on the History of Navy Rugby website here.

Images by Alligin Photography / © G Ashton Jones