Round five of National 1 sees Rotherham Titans face a tricky test when they host fellow newly promoted side Dings Crusaders; kick-off at Clifton Lane on Saturday is 2pm.
Titans suffered bitter disappointment last time out at Heywood Road, where a try in the final play of the game from Sale FC snatched away a famous victory, a victory the Titans would have fully deserved.
A catalogue of events conspired greatly in their downfall, but they won’t look to make any excuses, instead they’ll look inside the camp as to the reasons they didn’t come away from Sale with a fistful of points.
Rotherham will take learnings from last week as they aim to build on performances going forward and they’ll need to, as the tests keep on coming with this weekend’s opponents being Dings Crusaders.
Dings have made an impressive start to their National 1 campaign following their championship winning National 2 West success last term.
Dings attacking approach to the game saw them racked up over 1,000 points last year, losing just 3 games all-season and they have already made their mark at the higher level by claiming important wins over Plymouth Albion and Sedgley Park.
Dings ambitions of reaching the Championship have taken a significant boost this season; their partnership with Premiership side Bristol Bears has already borne fruit and there’s little doubt with the Premiership giants help, it’s only a matter of time before Dings will be competing at level 2 of the English game.
Nevertheless, Rotherham will continue to do what they have done for a long time and that’s give 100% effort for the club as they continue on their own journey of discovery against a side they have never previously played.
Going into this game however Titans have been forced into make several changes to their starting XV due to an ever-increasing injury list.
The front row sees hooker Luke Cole come in for Jack Bergmanas and he’ll be flanked by props Charlie Capps at loosehead and Alastair Donkor at tighthead who comes in for Andrew Foster.
The second row sees a return for Zak Poole as he comes in for the injured Frankie Gascoigne and he lines up alongside Curran Maguire.
The back row remains the same with John Okafor and Harry Newborn on the flanks and Callum Bustin at number 8.
Across the backline scrum half JB Bruzulier has a new partner in the half backs as Corben Ollivent comes in for the injured Rob Povey.
Lloyd Hayes also has a new partner in midfield as Jamie Cooke comes into the side at inside centre for the injured Tomasi Tanumi.
There’s a reshuffle in the back three as Ronnie Du Randt goes from wing to full back in place of Jack Townend.
Travis Gideon retains his place on one wing, whilst there’s a very welcome first start since April last year on the other wing for Jack Hedley, following his long-term leg injury.
Commenting ahead of the game Titans Harvey Biljon said:
“It’s always tough to lose a game in injury time; I do commend Sale however for being brave and going for it, I think the game is played in the right spirit then. We lost a game of rugby, but it’s not like we didn’t perform, the match stats back that up and if anything it has highlighted areas where we can improve.
“I don’t believe losing a game in injury time will dent the spirit or attitude of our players by any stretch. I think what it will do is give them an added motivation to look at crucial times within the game to make sure that it doesn’t come down to that.
“We are a team that is learning and that doesn’t mean you question your attitude. This is the thing with this squad, I’m not going into games thinking, are we ready for this, are they mentally in the right place. This squad wants to enjoy their rugby, wants to play hard and so now that’s the challenge for us as coaches, to make sure we give them the detail to go and do this to the best of their ability.
“Dings Crusaders are a team that are going to have lots of enthusiasm, fight and calibre and maybe even a higher calibre than Sale FC. So we need to make sure we don’t get caught up in anything else, but to keep doing what we’re doing.
“It’s great to see Dings in National 1; I’m sure with the Bristol Bears partnership they will be looking to go through the league so that Bristol and Dings have two teams in the two top tiers of English Rugby.
“They seem to have a strategic partnership that’s working well at the moment with the number of young players they are able to bring on through Dings and you can see the results they have put together so far. They are a team that are just going to get better and better as the season goes on.
“Dings can score from anywhere on the park through both backs and forwards and so our concentration and focus for staying in the game beyond the 80-minute mark is going to be crucial. That’s a big thing for us when you come up against sides as dangerous as they are.”
Titans: 15 Ronnie Du Randt, 14 Jack Hedley, 13 Lloyd Hayes, 12 Jamie Cooke, 11 Travis Gideon, 10 Corben Ollivent, 9 JB Bruzulier, 1 Charlie Capps (C-C), 2 Luke Cole, 3 Alastair Donkor, 4 Zak Poole (C-C), 5 Curran Maguire, 6 John Okafor, 7 Harry Newborn, 8 Callum Bustin.
Replacements: 16 Jack Bergmanas, 17 Loma Kivalu, 18 Andrew Foster, 19 Laurence Cowen-Leak, 20 James Naylor.
