Matt Hopper (born 29 January 1985) is a

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

player for Harlequins in the

Aviva Premiership Premiership Rugby, officially known as Gallagher Premiership Rugby, or the Gallagher Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is an English professional rugby union competition, consisting of 10 clubs, and is the top division of the English rugby u ...

. He primarily plays as a

Centre Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...

but can also cover Fullback. Hopper started playing mini rugby at age 10 and continued through school and in the junior teams of the

Exeter Chiefs Exeter Chiefs (officially Exeter Rugby Club) is an England, English professional rugby union club based in Exeter, Devon. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. The club was founded in 1871 and since 2006 has played i ...

, following in the footsteps of his father Keith who captained Exeter during the 1960s. He also played for Wessex and, while studying, for Cardiff University. After graduation Matt spent a year in Australia and played for Manly, before returning to the UK and joining Plymouth Albion. Following two years with Plymouth, Hopper joined

Cornish Pirates The Cornish Pirates () are a professional rugby union team who play in the RFU Championship, Championship, the second level of the English rugby union pyramid, and are the premier Cornish rugby club. The Cornish Pirates team are the 'First XV' o ...

in 2010. Pirates were defeated over the two legs of the

2010–11 RFU Championship The 2010–11 RFU Championship was the 2nd season (of the professionalised format) of the second division of the English domestic rugby union competitions, played between August 2010 and May 2011. New teams to the division included Worcester Warr ...

Final by

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engl ...

, but the team's dynamic playing style had attracted attention from several Premiership clubs and Hopper was recruited to join Harlequins in April 2011. Hopper made his competitive debut for Quins against

Sale Sharks Sale Sharks are a professional rugby union club from Greater Manchester, England, United Kingdom. Its team play in Premiership Rugby, and have been in England's top division of rugby union continuously since 1995. Originally founded in 1861 as ...

in round 5 of the

and gained his first start against

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city, non-metropolitan district and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West England, South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean ...

in the

Heineken Cup The European Rugby Champions Cup (known as the Investec Champions Cup for sponsorship reasons) is an annual rugby union tournament organised by European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). It is the top-tier competition for clubs who compete in a pre ...

, scoring a try. An injury to

George Lowe George Edward Lowe (November 10, 1957 – March 2, 2025) was an American voice actor and comedian whose voice roles included Space Ghost on the animated series ''Space Ghost Coast to Coast'' and its spin-off, '' Cartoon Planet''. He continued ...

gave Matt a run in the first XV and he played seven full matches during December 2011 and January 2012, including an away victory against French giants

Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...

. Hopper impressed many during this period and was rewarded with a call up to Stuart Lancaster's

Saxons The Saxons, sometimes called the Old Saxons or Continental Saxons, were a Germanic people of early medieval "Old" Saxony () which became a Carolingian " stem duchy" in 804, in what is now northern Germany. Many of their neighbours were, like th ...

squad to face the Irish Wolfhounds on 28 January 2012. He was a replacement for Harlequins in their 2011–12 Premiership final victory over

Leicester Tigers Leicester Tigers (officially Leicester Football Club) are a professional rugby union club based in Leicester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. The club was founded in 1880 and since 1892 plays its home ...

. ON 13 April 2017, Hopper to leave Harlequins and join French club

Oyonnax Oyonnax () is the second most populated commune in the Ain department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in eastern France. Oyonnax lies in a valley of the Jura Mountains in the far north of Ain. It is near the Parc naturel régional du Hau ...

in the

Top 14 The Top 14 () is a professional rugby union club competition that is played in France. Created in 1892, the Top 14 is at the top of the national league system operated by the National Rugby League (France), France National Rugby League, also ...

from the 2017–18 season.

References

External links

Harlequins profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hopper, Matt 1985 births Living people English rugby union players Harlequin F.C. players Rugby union players from Exeter Rugby union centres Rugby union fullbacks Manly RUFC players Oyonnax Rugby players English expatriate rugby union players in France