Rotherham Titans have grafted hard in training this week and are ready to take on the challenge of Tynedale in round 4 of Nat 2 North; kick-off at Clifton Lane on Saturday is 2pm.
The South Yorkshire side will go into this one with confidence restored after a good performance last time out which saw them beat Blaydon 50-3, scoring 7 tries from all areas of the park.
Tynedale however will provide stiff opposition, as they are unbeaten to date and sit two places above Rotherham in the table, occupying third spot.
The North East outfit has demonstrated a cutting edge to their game this season, having notched up 15 tries in their opening three games. Indeed, in last week’s 41-34 home win over Sheffield Tigers they managed to dot down an impressive 7 times.
Nevertheless, Rotherham will relish the challenge of taking on the in-form side as they look to maintain their interest at the right end of the table.
Going into the game Titans have made 5 changes to their starting XV.
Up front Gareth Denman comes back into the side at tight head prop for Rikki Stout, Lewis Allan returns to the second row as skipper Zak Poole reverts to the back row for Lewis Wilson, whilst also in the back row Callum Bustin starts ahead of Rupert Kay.
Along the backline Jack Hedley returns from injury and comes in on the wing for George Tucker, whilst new-boy Fraser Jones makes his debut on the wing in place of Jack Taylor.
Looking ahead to the match Titans’ Adam Byron said:
“I was happy with the result against Blaydon and having watched it back there were some aspects of our game that was really pleasing. It was good to see some of the stuff the boys have been working on in training come to fruition and it’s always good to get some points on the board.
“We’ve scored 19 tries in our opening three games and 16 of those have come in open play and that is something we are delighted with. We’ve tweaked a few things and although we would have liked to have scored a few more set-piece tries, it’s about getting the balance right between the two.
“Saturday’s game against Tynedale will give us an opportunity to try and improve further; however, we know it won’t be easy as they are a very good side. They’ve had a terrific start to the season and they’ve won all three of their games and are above us in the league.
“They will present us with a number of challenges, they are strong up front, but as we saw from last season they have real pace and skill in their backline. Their fullback, Rob Parker, caused us all sorts of problems last year and he’s coming into this one on the back of a hat-trick against Sheffield Tigers; so he’s obviously in good form and we’ll have to be on our guard, not just with him, but with their backline as a whole.
“Our boys however relish a challenge and on the back of a good week’s training I feel we are in a good place to face what Tynedale will throw at us. We’ll just need to make sure we are clinical when the opportunities to score arise.”
Titans: 15 Sam Veall, 14 Jack Hedley, 13 Lloyd Hayes, 12 Harry Dunne, 11 Fraser Jones, 10 Corben Ollivent, 9 Sam Boxhall, 1 Charlie Capps, 2 Jack Bergmanas, 3 Gareth Denman, 4 Theo Nwosu-Hope, 5 Lewis Allan, 6 Marcus Payne, 7 Zak Poole (Capt.), 8 Callum Bustin.
Replacements: 16 Louis Inman, 17 Danny Rylance, 18 Rikki Stout, 19 Rupert Kay, 20 Jack Taylor.
