Jack Petelo must be doing plenty right at Cheltenham Tigers because after just one season as head coach he has been promoted to director of rugby.

The club didn’t have a director of rugby last season and the 43-year-old is excited by the challenges that lie ahead.

The men’s flagship team will be competing in the new-look Regional 2 Severn division following the extensive restructuring of the leagues by the RFU, and the reorganisation has thrown up some mouthwatering match-ups.

Chief among them are the two games against long-time rivals Old Patesians, the first of which is at Everest Road on Saturday 24^th September.

But it’s not just the games against the Pats – the return fixture is on Saturday 17^th December – there are also games with fellow Gloucestershire sides Newent, Chosen Hill and Matson that most certainly whet the appetite.

Matson stormed to the Western Counties North title last season with second-placed Cheltenham some 19 points adrift, but that was enough to earn the runners-up promotion to the new-look Level 6 division along with Chosen Hill, Gordano and Winscombe. The rest of Regional 2 Severn comprises Chippenham, Frome, Keynsham, Thornbury and Trowbridge.

“Our aim this season is the same as last season, it’s to get promoted,” Petelo told The Local Answer. “That’s our mindset. We’ve still got all the players we had last season, we’re moving in the right direction.

“We know it’s going to be tough, there is a lot of local rugby to be played and Matson were absolutely outstanding last season.”

Two teams will be promoted at the end of the campaign and Petelo, who will still play when needed, has assembled a strong coaching team around him including Tom Hudson as lead coach, Paul Morgan as backs coach and Craig Ballinger as forwards and defence coach.

Gloucester players Henry Walker and Cameron Jordan will focus on the scrum and lineout respectively and while all bases seem to be covered, Petelo is determined to remain very much hands-on as well.

“I will overlook all the coaches but I still want to be involved as a coach,” said Petelo, who is about to start his fourth season with the club. “I love coaching and I love training, I still want to stay as fit as possible.”

Petelo, a forward, played in 17 games last season and started in quite a few and he reckons his presence on the field can be beneficial to the team.

“Yes, I do,” he said. “It’s good to run around with the young boys and it’s much easier to pass on information.”

But while the men’s flagship team will obviously be the main focus for the club going forward into the new season, it is by no means the only area that Petelo will be focused on.

“Our women’s team had a great last season winning Championship 1 North,” Petelo continued, “and their 2^nd team won their division as well. Everyone at the club is pulling together, the management and the committee work really hard.”

The women, like the men, have benefited greatly from playing on the artificial grass pitch at the Newlands.

“All our teams like to play a fast style of rugby,” said Petelo. “We like to keep the ball in hand and we like to run with it, the AGP is perfect for the way we play, nobody wants to play in the mud.

“When the players turn up for training the first thing they ask is: ‘Are we training on the AGP?’”

And it’s not just the pitch that has got the Tigers purring.

“I believe we’ve got the best facilities in Gloucestershire,” insisted Petelo, whose new brief will also see him working extensively with the minis and juniors this season. “The clubhouse is newly refurbished with brand new changing rooms with en suite and underfloor heating, it’s a great place to be.”