Of the 17 players who left the Bristol Bears this summer, the frontrow twins were two.
Aristot and Jonny Benz-Salomon, the former frontrow twins of the Bristol Bears, have agreed to dual contracts with Gloucester Rugby and Championship team Hartpury in front of the 2024–2025 season.
The 23-year-olds were born in Spain but spent their formative years in England, having joined the Bristol Bears in the summer of 2022 and progressing through the youth ranks of Harlequins before going to study and play rugby at Hartpury University. After signing, they continued to be dual registered with the senior Championship team.
Tighthead Jono made 14 appearances for Bristol over his two seasons at the club while loosehead Aristot Benz-Salomon, known as Toti, made three before the pair were released this summer, but not before writing their names in the clubs’ history books.
The Benz-Salomon brothers joined Percy and Reg Hussey (1895–01) and Harry and William Wookey (1910–14) as the third set of twins to play together for Bristol in September 2022. However, since losing the A–League and facing competition from the Bears, the brothers have struggled to get competitive playing time at the Premiership side, with the majority of their appearances coming in the Premiership Rugby Cup. Nevertheless, at just 23, their future in the game is still unwritten, with props typically peaking around the age of 30.
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