Hartpury has 17 players in the international squads at this year’s men’s and women’s Six Nations Championships – enough to field a team of its own plus a couple of replacements.

The 17 are made up of current or former Hartpury University and Hartpury College students and Gloucester-Hartpury Women RFC players.

Jonny May, Ellis Genge and Dan Robson are involved in the England men’s squad preparing for Saturday’s match against Italy, whose players include another Hartpury alumnus, Sebastian Negri.

After beating England in their last game, former Hartpury student Ross Moriarty will be on duty with Wales as the tournament leaders look to move a step a closer to the title with victory over Scotland on Saturday.

In the women’s competition, Friday’s match between Scotland and Wales is set to include a number of players with Hartpury links.

Current Hartpury students Bethan Lewis and Hannah Jones are members of the Wales squad, which also includes Cerys Hale and Kelsey Jones from Gloucester-Hartpury Women RFC, a partnership between Hartpury and Gloucester Rugby.

Scotland’s Six Nations women’s squad includes former Hartpury student Sarah Bonar and her Gloucester-Hartpury Women team-mate Katie Dougan.

The England women’s squad, which faces Italy on Saturday, includes an array of players with links to Hartpury University and Hartpury College.

Current students Kelly Smith and Sarah Bern and graduates Hannah Botterman and Zoe Harrison are all involved with the squad, along with their Gloucester-Hartpury Women team-mates and Hartpury alumni Natasha Hunt and Tatyana Heard.

Tom Radcliffe, Director of Elite Sport at Hartpury, said: “It’s always a huge thrill to see our graduates fulfilling their ambitions and competing at the highest level in their chosen sport.

“We’re extremely proud to see so many of our current and former students competing for their countries again in this year’s men’s and women’s Six Nations, especially as we’ve seen on campus on a daily basis how hard they’ve worked to get there.

“These talented individuals, many of whom are still studying with us or regularly visit the campus, are a constant reminder to our students about what they could achieve if they set their minds to it.

“More than 200 Hartpury graduates have gained international honours in the past decade and, knowing how committed and dedicated our students are, I’ve no doubt there will be many more in the future.”

In December, Hartpury College won the AASE League final for the ninth time in 10 years, while Hartpury University won the BUCS Championship final at Twickenham in May.