The 28-year-old, who can play at loose or tight head, joins having played for the Highlanders in Super Rugby last season and made three appearances in the World Cup in New Zealand for Tongan.

Commenting on the signing Director of Rugby Diccon Edwards said, “We are delighted to have secured a player of Halani’s quality as we enter a crucial part of the season. The fact that he can play on both sides of the front row is a major plus for us especially with Mike MacDonald and Phil Swainston currently out injured and Kane Palma-Newport having returned to Bath after his loan spell at the club.

“He will add a lot of experience to our squad as we look to build our momentum in to the play offs and our promotion drive,” added Edwards.

Aulika, who arrived in England today, has been capped five times for Tonga, making his debut for the national team in August 2011 in the World Cup warm up games against Fiji. He has previously played for The Highlanders, Otago and Otuhuhu in New Zealand having been born in Tonga.

They will use facilities around the North Leeds area, including West Park Leeds RUFC – a Level 8 Yorkshire Division Two club – and weights facilities at the Leeds Rugby Academy at Kirkstall during their January 23-27 camp as they prepare to defend their RBS 6 Nations title.

The area has recently hosted the England Under-17 and Under-18 squads.

England have spent their January training week in Portugal for the last three years and while they will still be based at Pennyhill, Surrey, during Test weeks, Head Coach Stuart Lancaster explained the change of venue for this particular five days.

“There are a variety of reasons we wanted to use a different venue centred around wanting to keep the camp in this country,” said Lancaster.

“The main objectives of the camp are to spend some time together, building the team, reviewing the World Cup but more importantly working together on setting our goals for the Six Nations and beyond and getting on the same page with our rugby game plan.

“By keeping it in England we can create a “new” feel to the camp, in what is a new start. It will allow us to train in conditions that we will be facing up at Murrayfield, create opportunities for the team to stay connected with the public, and allow us to invite in one or two people from outside of rugby to help us shape our future.

“All the players have come through grassroots rugby and, with excellent facilities at West Park Leeds and the availability of local facilities and provision for poor weather options, Leeds was the best fit when we considered all the options. Hopefully it will also give a boost to rugby in the North and help in developing the game in the area.”

RFU Director of Rugby Development Steve Grainger said: “Clubs are at the heart of rugby in this country and it’s fantastic that England are going to train at one which is thriving like West Park Leeds. Stuart has talked about the team connecting with the wider rugby community and this move shows that commitment. I am sure it will not only be a great experience for the England players and the club but a boost for rugby in the North as well.”

England will stay at Pennyhill Park for the first ‘fallow’ week  (February 13) but move to a different venue for the second one (February 27), the venue for which will be announced in due course.

Esher have been boosted by the return of four star players as they aim to spring a shock against mighty Leeds at Molesey Road on Saturday.

The Championship strugglers have Canadian centre Phil Mackenzie, former Saxons scrum-half Clive Stuart-Smith, lock Paul Barker and centre Arran Cruickshanks in the squad.

World Cup ace Mackenzie has been out since being concussed against Doncaster while Stuart-Smith showed no ill-effects at Monday training after a hamstring niggle.

Cruickshanks impressed in midfield on his return from a broken foot in last Saturday’s British and Irish Cup defeat by Leinster.

But the biggest boost is the return of experienced second-rower Barker, who played his first game of the campaign in the 32-18 defeat by the Irish province.

Barker has been missing with a knee injury sustained at the end of last season but could feature in the 22 against in-form Leeds.

The return of the fab four is a big lift for Director of Rugby Mike Schmid as Esher aim to end their desperate run of 10 straight league defeats that has left them rooted to the foot of the table without a solitary bonus point.

Schmid said: “It was great to see Arran Cruickshanks and Paul Barker back.

"Arran did very well against Leinster while Paul was outstanding.

“Paul has been one or our best players over the last few seasons and he played the full 80 minutes. It’s great to get such experienced players back.

“Phil Mackenzie is fine and will start while we are hoping Clive Stuart-Smith will be okay. He trained during the week and the hamstring seemed to be fine.”

Schmid knows the odds are stacked against Esher as they face a Leeds side who have won their last five games, including impressive wins against Bedford and Nottingham.

Leeds, who have the likes of former England wing Michael Stephenson in their ranks, will start as hot favourites but Schmid insists Esher will be ready for the challenge.

However, the Molesey Road chief concedes claiming a top-eight spot to avoid the relegation play-offs is virtually impossible now with eighth-placed Nottingham 24 points ahead.

He admitted: “Of course it’s unlikely but I still feel we are capable of winning a lot of games. The effort has been tremendous and we know we are capable of beating teams when we have a healthy team.

“We have got to go out there and give it a blast. We want to win our home games and pick up a few points away to be ready for the play-offs.

“Leeds are hitting some good form now after a poor start and after the disappointment of relegation from the Premiership. It often takes a while to work through that.”

Esher got another lift with the news that loosehead prop Dave Millard should play his first game of the season for the 2nd XV this weekend.

Millard has been out since last season after neck surgery. Schmid said:

“He’s been outstanding for us for a few seasons and it will be great to get him back. But we’ve got to be sensible and step it up week by week.”

15 Geoff Griffiths

14 Charlie Walker

13 Phil Mackenzie

12 Arran Cruickshanks

11 Andy Wright

10 Mark Atkinson

9 Jamie Mackenzie

8 Chris Goodman (Capt)

7 Peter Synnott

6 Mike Macfarlane

5 Perry Parker

4 Paul Barker

3 James Gethings

2 Jamie Mackie

1 Ollie Mines

16 James Campbell

17 Mike Blakeburn

18 Shawn Renwick

19 Neil Sweeney

20 Rob Kirby

21 Sam Edgerley

22 Clive Stuart – Smith

Edwards is able to name an unchanged backline to the side that beat Plymouth Albion at home last Sunday however the two changes come in the forwards. Skipper Mike MacDonald has been ruled out with a shoulder injury so youngster Gareth Denman returns to the starting line-up. The other change sees Tom Denton start in the second row alongside Sean Hohneck with Dominic Barrow moving from the second row to flanker in place of Dan Hemingway, who is amongst the replacements this week. Denman’s place on the bench is taken by Sam Lockwood.

Carnegie have lost on their last two visits to Bedford in season’s that they eventually finished at Champions. Leeds won at Goldington Road on their first visit back in 2001, 48-3, but in 2006, Stuart Lancaster’s side lost 21-25, which was followed up two years later by a 24-27 defeat under Neil Back and Andy Key.

The squad in full is:

15. Tommy Bell
14. Michael Stephenson
13. Iain Thornley
12. Joe Barker
11. Stevie McColl
10. Joe Ford
9. Craig Hampson
1. Gareth Denman
2. Phil Nilsen
3. David Young
4. Tom Denton
5. Sean Hohneck
6. Dominic Barrow
7. Chris Walker
8. Jacob Rowan
16. Scott Freer
17. Sam Lockwood
18. Phil Swainston
19. Richard Beck
20. Dan Hemingway
21. Robbie Shaw
22. Lee Blackett

2008/9 was the last time that the two sides met in the old National Division One and that season finished with Leeds being promoted back to the top flight. During that campaign the Yorkshire side won 19-8 at Headingley, but they tasted defeat on the visit to Bedford as the Blues ran in four tries – including a memorable effort from winger Ryan Owen that started on Bedford’s five metre line – to win 27-24.

Leeds made a rocky start to the Championship before picking up an impressive win over Bristol only to be humbled at Cornish Pirates the following week, but in recent weeks they have picked up important wins over London Scottish, Moseley and Plymouth to move into eighth place in the league.

Bedford currently sit third in the Championship having won their opening three games before losing to both Rotherham and Bristol. Since then Bedford have embarked on a four game unbeaten run, but they did draw 18 all with Doncaster in the last home game.

Looking ahead to the game Blues backs coach Paul Larkin said: "We welcome Leeds who come to us on the back of three positive performances but we feel that we are in a good position to match them following an excellent performance of our own down at London Scottish.

"We believe that this is a game that will be played with plenty of width as Leeds are very positive in their intent, but if we bring the intensity and relentless pressure that we have demonstrated in recent weeks then we should get the result that we are looking for."

Bedford make a number of changes to the team that started against London Scottish last weekend. Neil Cochrane misses out with a calf injury while Brendan Burke is given time to recuperate from a knock he picked up against the Exiles. Chris Locke gets the nod at hooker while Tom Bedford returns at 12 and Ollie Dodge reverts to 13. Up front, Sam Pailor comes in at lock alongside Mike Howard while Sean Tomes moves to the bench where he is joined by dual registered hooker Harry Allen, Phil Boulton who returns from suspension and Handre Schmidt who was rested last weekend.

Bedford starting line-up:

15. James Pritchard (c)
14. David Vincent
13. Ollie Dodge
12. Tom Bedford
11. Josh Bassett
10. Jake Sharp
9. Darryl Veenendaal
1. Sam Walsh
2. Chris Locke
3. Dan Seal
4. Sam Pailor
5. Mike Howard
6. Alex Rae
7. Sacha Harding
8. Don Barrell
Replacements: 16. Harry Allen, 17. Phil Boulton, 18. Sean Tomes , 19. Paul Tupai, 20. Stefan Liebenberg, 21. Jamie Lennard, 22. Handre Schmidt.

Albion finished strongly against Scottish with replacement Steve Johns grabbing victory for his side with the last move of the game.

Johns is rewarded for his efforts with his first Championship start of the season on Sunday.

Canadian World Cup star Aaron Carpenter has failed to recover from a knee injury in time to take his place in Albion’s starting line-up team, but Plymouth hope he might be fit enough to take a place on the bench.

Carpenter’s number eight shirt goes to 19-year-old former Leeds Academy player James Tyas, who will be hoping to impress on his return to Headingley.

Albion, who will be looking for their first away win of the season after narrow defeats at Doncaster, Bristol and London Welsh, are able to welcome back forwards Herbie Stupple and Addison Lockley to their squad following injuries.

Plymouth and Leeds currently sit level of points with both teams having won three matches this season.

Albion: 15 James Love, 14 Steve Johns, 13 Bevon Armitage, 12 Keni Fisilau, 11 Mick McGrath, 10 Paul Bailey, 9 Ruairi Cushion, 1 Rob Dugard, 2 Gareth Evans, 3 Ryan Hopkins, 4 Dan Collier, 5 Tyler Hotson, 6 Sam Hocking, 7 Wayne Sprangle, 8 James Tyas.
Replacements: 16 Dale Farnham, 17 Cameron Mitchell, 18 Tyson Lewis, 19 David Morton, 20 Davy McGregor, 21 Addison Lockley, 22 Herbie Stupple, 23 Aaron Carpenter.

Matches against the men from Leeds Carnegie have generally been incredibly close. The Pirates have played them five times – winning one, drawing one and losing three – and as for a highlight moment, for the Cornish club it has to be their 18-17 points EDF Energy National Trophy match win away in February, 2007.

Saturday’s visitors were, of course, relegated from the Premiership at the end of last season, when it all went down to the last day. They put up an admirable fight at Northampton before losing 31-24, whilst Newcastle Falcons, who went down 42-12 at Bath, survived by having a superior points difference.

Neil Back resigned following relegation to be replaced by former Academy Manager Diccon Edwards, and a total of 17 players exited Leeds Carnegie. Theirs is still, naturally, a strong outfit, but their Championship campaign has got off to a mixed start. In their opening game they lost 26-13 at home to London Welsh, and they then went down 22-18 at Rotherham Titans just a week later. However, last Sunday saw them win 12-11 at home to a strong Bristol side, when they showed their true pedigree by suitably recovering after being 11-3 down at half-time, and the Pirates can be assured of the sternest of tests this weekend in front of what will hopefully be a large and enthusiastic crowd. With their backing and resilience, and with a record of producing quality Academy players, despite their mixed start there’s a feeling that Leeds Carnegie will inevitably be right in the mix come the season’s end, and it’ll be interesting to monitor their progress.

Also on Saturday everyone present will be delighted that Paul Wickes and the Falmouth Marine Band will make their presence heard, as will the always popular Cadgwith Singers.

Tickets for Saturday’s game can be purchased on-line at www.cornish-pirates.com until 10am on Saturday, and they can also be bought from various Warrens bakers outlets about the county, besides being available on the day.

The Cornish Pirates side named for Saturday shows a number of changes from the team that played in the Championship match at London Scottish last Saturday, including a return at scrum-half for skipper Gavin Cattle and a first Championship game of the season for Chris Morgan who has returned to full fitness and enjoyed some welcome game time in Wednesday’s British & Irish Cup match win against Bristol. Wing David Doherty and fly-half Ceiron Thomas will also be facing a club they have both previously played for.

Cornish Pirates: R. Cook, W. Davies, G. Pointer, D. Locke, D. Doherty, C. Thomas, G. Cattle (capt), B. Cowan, P. Burgess, C. Morgan, I. Nimmo, L. McGlone, A. Paver, D. Ward, C. Rimmer.

Replacements: R. Storer, R. Elloway, R. Brits, M. Myerscough, C. Walker-Blair, J. Doherty, T. Cooper.
Referee: Luke Pearce (RFU) Assistants: Ross Campbell & Steve Leyshon
Official 4: Andy Bickle TMO: Tony Spreadbury

The B&I Cup presents clubs with an additional opportunity to get their hands on some silverware and Rotherham are keen to impress in this season’s competition.

Titans Head Coach Andre Bester has a squad rotation policy, which he believes will help his team cope better throughout the long hard campaign ahead and will make full use of this policy for the Leeds fixture.

Rotherham will be interested to see how fly half Dave Marshall fairs on debut following his summer move from Nottingham. Second rower Barnie Maddison also on debut, will be keen to catch the eye of Andre Bester after impressing in training and Tom Foden gets his first chance to impress at outside centre.

Looking forward to the fixture Bester explained, “The British and Irish Cup has more importance than in previous years because it’s more for our development of players. Because it’s going to be played in midweek you have to carry a bigger squad than in previous seasons.

“However you don’t want to carry a squad without giving other players the opportunity to make a mark and force their way into the Championship league team. And I believe we have a strong enough squad to compete well this competition.”

Rotherham Titans: 15 Cliffie Hodgson, 14 John McMahon, 13 Tom Foden, 12 Byron Godfrey, 11 Will Du Randt, 10 Dave Marshall, 9 Roger Kirkwood, 1 Shane Cahill, 2 Ross White, 3 Ben Harris, 4 Barnie Maddison, 5 Talite Vaioleti, 6 Ross Noonan, 7 Joe Dickinson, 8 Carl Kirwan.

Replacements: Ted Stagg, Ricky Stout, Ben Hooper, Adrian Griffiths, Jimmy Williams, Matt Rhodes, Peter Homan.

The Welsh skipper had double reason to celebrate his side’s opening weekend 26-13 victory at Headingley Carnegie Stadium, as he reached 100 league appearances for the Exiles.

“If we don’t back this up it will be a waste of a win. We’ve to make sure, first home game of the season we start with a win,” said Mills.

“It’s always nice to start off with a win at home and it puts you on the front foot. We’ll be hoping to get a win for the supporters and I hope they’re looking forward to some good running rugby from London Welsh this season.”

Tries from Liam Gibson and Simon Whatling and 16 points from the boot of Gordon Ross helped the Exiles establish a 26-6 lead. Leeds fought back in the third quarter with Ryan Burrows touching down and Welsh being reduced to 14-men when Adam Brown saw yellow, but the Exiles held out for a deserved victory.

“We’d have taken that before the game. There’s still loads for us to work on and some scrappy areas where we know we’ll get better the more we play with each other,” added Mills.

“To go away to Leeds first game of the season, it was a really gutsy performance from us, but at the same time loads to work on.

“We only played for about 20 minutes of the game. We had plenty of the ball but we were a bit loose with it at times with little offloads when they probably weren’t on.

“We just needed to keep hold of it a little bit longer and if we’d gone through another couple of phases it probably would have opened up for us.

“But that’s the intent we want play with, we’re looking for offloads. We just need to think a bit more about when to look for it, rather than just keep looking for it.

“But that will come, the boys are good enough to realise when it’s not going to be on. It’s a good intent for the boys to look for the offload and I’m sure we’ll make better decisions the more we do it.”

Shaw was at Headingley Carnegie on Sunday as his new side lost out to London Welsh in their opening game in the Championship. He has been part of the USA squad this summer but missed out on selection for the World Cup in the final selection. He played for Bristol last season in the Championship and has been training with Welsh regional side Scarlets this summer.

Commenting on signing for Leeds Carnegie, the 28 year old said, “I am really pleased to be joining Leeds Carnegie. Having met with Diccon Edwards and seen first hand the style that Leeds want to play this year, it is exciting to be coming into the squad. The Championship is a very tough competition but Leeds have got a squad that is looking to compete at the top of the division. I will start training this week but I will have to prove my worth to the squad. We have got two good young scrum halves in Dan White and Craig Hampson and I was impressed by both of them in the London Welsh game."

Head Coach Diccon Edwards commented, “We are delighted to have signed Robbie. He was one of the stand out players for Bristol last year and he will give us strength in depth in the scrum half position.”

• Height:
  5’10
• Weight:
  192
• Position:
  Scrumhalf
• Caps:
  2 (debut v Ireland A June 2008)
• International Scoring:
  no international scoring record
• Current Club:
  Bristol
• Birthdate:
  July 24, 1983
• Born:
  Berkshire, England
• Hometown:
  Maidenhead, England
• Residence:
  Bristol, England
• Highlights:
  Robbie first started playing rugby at the age of 12. Since then he has played for the London Wasps (2000-2004), the London Welsh (2004-07) and most recently the Connacht and Galwegians. He also played for the U-21 Ireland side at the World Championships. Robbie plays for Bristol in England and is a consistent presence at scrumhalf.