Titans Set for Friday Night Tussle at Lady Bay

Rotherham Titans face another tough test of their Elior Champ Rugby campaign on Friday night when they make the relatively short trip down the M1 to take on old rivals Nottingham under the lights at Lady Bay.

Kick-off is at 7:45 on Friday evening, with supporters unable to make the journey able to follow all the action on Clubber TV, which will be screened live back at the clubhouse at Clifton Lane.

Titans head into the fixture looking to bounce back from Sunday’s disappointing 40-21 home defeat against Cornish Pirates, when the visitors from Cornwall ran out deserved 40-21 winners after outscoring the South Yorkshire side by six tries to three.

Despite the final scoreline, Rotherham put in a huge physical effort against a strong Pirates outfit and produced some excellent rugby, crossing for three terrific tries along the way. However, on the day, the visitors proved too strong, with their clinical finishing and ability to take advantage of key opportunities ultimately making the difference.

With such a short turnaround, Titans now face the challenge of putting that disappointment behind them and quickly turning their attention to another demanding encounter against familiar opposition.

Nottingham, meanwhile, have enjoyed a full week to prepare following their narrow 21-17 defeat away at Chinnor last Friday.

Although the Archers came away empty-handed, they can take considerable encouragement from a performance that pushed one of the division’s strongest sides all the way.

In a closely contested encounter, with six tries shared evenly between the teams, Chinnor were made to cling on during the closing stages as Nottingham threw everything at them in search of a winning score. The visitors came agonisingly close to completing an impressive away victory and will undoubtedly take plenty of confidence from the performance into Friday’s clash.

Both sides therefore arrive at Lady Bay following hard-fought defeats, and both will be determined to get their respective campaigns back on track with a positive result.

There is certainly no shortage of history between these two clubs, with the rivalry stretching back to 1996. Friday’s meeting will be their 31st league encounter, with all previous 30 fixtures taking place at level two of English rugby.

The overall league head-to-head makes interesting reading, with Titans holding a slender advantage, having recorded 16 victories to Nottingham’s 12, with the remaining two fixtures ending in draws.

That narrow statistical advantage is unlikely to count for much when the sides take to the field on Friday night, however, with pride and valuable league points providing more than enough incentive for both teams.

Titans are under no illusions about the challenge awaiting them at Lady Bay. Nottingham are an experienced and competitive outfit, and their performance against Chinnor demonstrated the threat they pose, particularly when playing with confidence and momentum.

Another close, physical and fiercely contested encounter is anticipated, with the outcome likely to depend on which side can best impose its style of play and take advantage of the opportunities that come its way.

For Rotherham, the challenge is to recover quickly from Sunday’s disappointment, reproduce the physical commitment shown against Pirates and, crucially, maintain their discipline and accuracy for the full 80 minutes.

If the South Yorkshire side can implement their game plan and deliver the sort of performance they know they are capable of, they will give themselves every opportunity of returning from Lady Bay with some valuable rewards.

Going into the game Titans have made four changes from last week’s starting XV, with two coming in the backs and two in the pack.

An unchanged front row sees Zac Nearchou at loose head prop, with Morgan Veness at hooker, and Corrie Barrett at tight head.

Frankie Gascoigne maintains his spot in the second row, and he’ll be joined there by Alfie Bell who comes in for Curran Maguire.

In the back row Ellis Thomas comes in at blindside for John Okafor with Travis Gordon captaining the side from the open side, and Callum Bustin at number 8.

Across the back line scrum half Cameron Nordli-Kelemeti comes in for JB Bruzulier and he’ll link-up in the half back positions with fly half Russell Bennett.

In midfield Ali Mgijima partners up again with Lloyd Hayes.

Whilst across the back three Mitchell Lacey-Babalola comes in on the right wing for Jackson Barling, with Ben Cambriani on the left wing and Isaac Shaw at Full Back.

Titans: 15 Isaac Shaw, 14 Mitchell Lacey-Babalola, 13 Lloyd Hayes, 12 Ali Mgijima, 11 Ben Cambriani, 10 Russell Bennett, 9 Cameron Nordli-Kelemeti, 1 Zac Nearchou, 2 Morgan Veness, 3 Corrie Barrett, 4 Frankie Gascoigne, 5 Alfie Bell, 6 Ellis Thomas, 7 Travis Gordon (Capt.), 8 Callum Bustin.

Replacements: 16 Louis Inman, 17 Zach Toerien, 18 Tom Bairstow, 19 Louis Guthrie, 20 John Okafor, 21 Jack Baldry, 22 JB Bruzulier, 23 Tom Threlfall.