Titans Ready to Bounce Back Against Bedford Blues

Rotherham Titans return to Clifton Lane for round 3 of Elior Champ Rugby on Saturday afternoon looking to put last weekend’s chastening defeat at Worcester Warriors firmly behind them when they welcome Bedford Blues for a 3pm kick-off.

After making an outstanding start to life back in the Champ with a dramatic 38-35 victory over Coventry, Titans were brought back down to earth at Sixways as the reigning champions demonstrated the considerable quality they possess.

Rotherham’s scant reward for their efforts was a pair of tries from back row forward Harry Stone and full-back Isaac Shaw, as Worcester ultimately ran out convincing winners.

However, the final scoreline perhaps failed to reflect some of the positive aspects of the Titans’ performance, particularly during the opening 20 minutes of each half. It was only during the final quarter that the game really got away from Rotherham, with Worcester’s attacking power eventually telling.

For Titans, though, their season will certainly not be defined by an away fixture against the reigning champions.

They will know that there is plenty to build upon from their opening two games and, having now experienced both the highs of that dramatic Coventry victory and the lows of Sixways, they will be eager to produce a strong response in front of their home supporters.

Standing in their way are another of the Champs most established clubs, Bedford Blues.

Bedford also arrive at Clifton Lane looking to bounce back after suffering a disappointing home defeat against Chinnor last weekend. Like Rotherham, the Blues were beaten by Worcester in their opening fixture, meaning both sides will be keen to get their respective campaigns moving in the right direction.

There will be no sense of panic within the Bedford camp, however. Under the long-standing stewardship of Director of Rugby Mike Rayer, the Blues have developed a reputation for consistency and competitiveness at this level, and they will be plotting a route towards another season challenging at the top end of the Champ.

Saturday’s contest will therefore bring together two sides with plenty to prove, but neither will be looking too far beyond the immediate challenge.

The fixture also carries plenty of history.

Since their first meeting in 1996, the clubs have faced each other 44 times in the league, all at level two, with Bedford holding the advantage. The Blues have won 25 of those encounters to Rotherham’s 18, with one match ending in a draw.

Perhaps the most famous meeting came in May 2000, when the sides met at Goldington Road in the second leg of a Premiership play-off.

Titans had produced a stunning 40-20 victory at Clifton Lane in the first leg, but Bedford fought desperately to overturn the deficit on home soil. Rotherham eventually suffered a 14-0 defeat, but it was enough to secure a famous aggregate victory and see Titans become Yorkshire’s first-ever Premiership side.

Saturday’s game will not carry anything like the same significance, with neither the result nor the outcome defining either club’s season.

What it does promise, however, is another hugely competitive and entertaining Champ encounter between two highly regarded rugby clubs with a long and proud history.

With home advantage behind them, Titans will be hoping Clifton Lane can once again provide the setting for another memorable afternoon.

Titans Director of Rugby, Harvey Biljon, has made seven changes to the starting XV which was beaten at Worcester, with four of those changes coming in the pack.

Alastair Donkor comes into the front row at loosehead prop in place of Zac Nearchou, while Morgan Veness continues at hooker as does Andrew Foster at tighthead.

Alfie Bell retains his place in the second row and is joined there by John Okafor who moves from the back row for the injured Louis Guthrie.

Lekima Ravuvu moves into the back row at blindside for John Okafor, where he is joined by openside Travis Gordon who comes in for Harry Stone and at eight Callum Bustin comes in for Ellis Thomas.

There are also three changes behind the scrum.

JB Bruzulier starts at scrum-half in place of Cameron Nordli-Kelemeti and partners Russell Bennett in the half-backs.

In midfield, Ali Mgijima is joined by Lloyd Hayes, with Mitchell Lacey-Babalola making way.  

And along the back three Ben Cambriani starts on the left wing with Jackson Barling coming in on the right wing for Epi Rokodrava, while Isaac Shaw continues at full-back.

Speaking ahead of the match Harvey Biljon said:

“We said going into the Champ that we would experience some real highs, but also some lows and we’re probably going to see some more during the remainder of the season.

“For parts of the Worcester game I think we battled well and created opportunities and in other parts I’m afraid we probably all feel we could have been better. The important bit here is everyone says we’ve got to learn from this game and we will learn.

“But we also must be very clear, don’t take anything away from Worcester, they’re champions for a reason and on that surface, they were very good.

“We now move on to Bedford, and we must mention Mike Rayer. Mike is a great coach; he’s been at Bedford a long time and what he’s achieved there is exceptional.

“You see the first two results they’ve had, but don’t be fooled; Mike has a great deal of experience and his players will be calm and they’ll understand exactly what they need to bring to turn around a result and they are definitely a team that can make that happen in an exceptional way.

“You don’t have a track record like Bedford if you’re not a good team that’s not well coached. They were finalists last year and are known for being very competitive and I expect a very tough fixture and a reaction.

“Bedford know how to plan a season, and they know they don’t have to finish top of the table; they’ll be strategically planning their campaign and what it looks like to be in the play-offs, and they’ll be ready to perform at the business end of the season.

“They are very powerful up front, very physical and very direct, but they’ve still got that ability to play with speed and out wide they finish well.

“We’ve got a few bangs and bruises and they’ll be a few changes, similar to last week; but we are back at home in front of our supporters and it’s going to be another helluva challenge. We are not looking at end outcomes; we’re looking at training well and challenging ourselves.

“We’ve been thrown in the deep end with Coventry, Worcester and Bedford. We’ve now got to come off the back of two very big games and put in another performance, so our focus will be a little bit more on ourselves. We’ll looking at key areas where we can make improvements and if we continue to get that right, we’ll continue to develop throughout the season.”

Titans: 15 Isaac Shaw, 14 Jackson Barling, 13 Lloyd Hayes, 12 Ali Mgijima, 11 Ben Cambriani, 10 Russell Bennett (Capt.), 9 JB Bruzulier, 1 Alastair Donkor, 2 Morgan Veness, 3 Andrew Foster, 4 Alfie Bell, 5 John Okafor, 6 Lekima Ravuvu, 7 Travis Gordon (c/c), 8 Callum Bustin.

Replacements: 16 Dewald Kotze, 17 Zac Nearchou, 18 Corrie Barrett, 19 Curran Maguire, 20 Harry Stone, 21 Jack Baldry, 22 Cameron Nordli-Kelemeti, 23 Mitchell Lacey-Babalola.

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