Veteran ex-England wing Semesa Rokoduguni extends career by another season

Doncaster Knights have handed former England wing Semesa Rokoduguni a new one-year deal, extending his stay in south Yorkshire to a third season.

Rokoduguni, who scored three tries in 12 appearances in the last Elior Champ campaign, will turn 39 on the eve of the 2026/27 season but is not ready to hang up his boots just yet.

Doncaster’s decision to go part-time next season will help Rokoduguni, a Lance Corporal, to keep managing the demands of Army life with semi-pro rugby.

Rokoduguni recently played for the Army in their 41-36 Babock Trophy defeat to the Royal Navy at Allianz Stadium at the start of May.

“The reason why I hold military rugby so close to my heart,” Rokoduguni said in an interview with Rugby Journal, “is because they’ve given me the opportunity, they’ve opened the door for me. If it wasn’t for them telling me that I was good enough to play, I would never have played for Bath or England. I’d still be spending my days fixing tanks.”

The Fijian-born star arrived at Castle Park in the summer of 2024 after two seasons in France, having spent 10 years with Bath, where he played 194 games and scored 71 tries and became a huge fan favourite.

He scored four tries in as many caps for England whilst in his pomp for Bath, between 2014 and 2017.

Doncaster Director of Rugby Sir Ian McGeechan said: “We are delighted to have him another year, his contribution in training as well as his impact in games adds so much value to the squad. A great role model.”

Who Rokoduguni plays under at Doncaster remains to be seen. While McGeechan remains as DoR, the Knights are looking for a new head coach and attack coach, after Darren Fearns and Jacob Ford, accepted transition coach jobs at Newcastle and Sale, respectively.