Students ready to hand Hartpury tough test
Loughborough Students have been performing well this season in National One
©Adedapo Segun and Loughborough Rugby
It has been nothing short of perfect for Hartpury College so far this season, but the league leaders will certainly be challenged this weekend when they take on an in-form Loughborough Students side.
The National One table toppers have picked up 12 straight bonus-point wins so far this term and have a 13 point lead at this stage of the campaign. Their next hurdle to negotiate is Loughborough Students; a side that has been performing above expectations this year and it could prove a tricky game for College in Round 13.
Second placed Birmingham Moseley are in need of some favours from other sides if they have any hopes of making a return to the Championship. They take on another team towards the right end of the table in Blackheath tomorrow who are aiming to return to winning ways.
Elsewhere, Plymouth Albion will be looking to make it five wins on the bounce as they host Macclesfield whilst at the other end of the table Blaydon travel to Ampthill and District, Hull Ionians go to Cambridge and Darlington Mowden Park welcome Esher to the north-east.
Loughborough Students v Hartpury College
Hartpury College will be going for an unprecedented 13th straight bonus-point win this weekend, but it won’t be easy for them. They take on arguably their toughest test since the opening few weeks of the season when they travel to Loughborough Students tomorrow.
The Midlands side have won four of their last five matches with their only defeat coming against third placed Plymouth. They currently occupy seventh in the table and will be in a buoyant mood this weekend following their impressive 32-26 win away at high-flying Blackheath six days ago.
But, their challenge will be huge this Saturday against a Hartpury side that look unstoppable. The league leaders currently sit 13 points clear at the top and have scored 106 points and conceded zero in their last two outings against the Old Albanian and Darlington Mowden Park. Can Loughborough continue their impressive season by becoming the first side to beat Hartpury College this term?
Birmingham Moseley v Blackheath
Birmingham Moseley’s Chris Brightwell said this week that his side need ‘early gifts from Santa Claus’ if they are to stand any chance of making an immediate return to the Championship.
Moseley were relegated from English rugby’s second tier last season and despite winning 10 of their first 12 matches in National One, they are 13 points of the promotion place heading into this crucial fixture with Blackheath. Kevin Maggs’ side take on league leaders Hartpury next week and then Coventry before the Christmas break and Brightwell says Moseley cannot afford any more slip ups.
This fixture against Blackheath is certainly a potential banana skin for them. Club currently sit fourth in the table and just three points behind Moseley, but the visitors to Billesley Common will be hoping to return to winning ways this Saturday.
Blackheath were beaten at home by Loughborough Students last week and have now lost two of their last four matches. On a more positive note, Club have won nine times this season which shows the immense quality they have in their ranks and they will need to display some of that this weekend if they are to come away from the Midlands with the spoils.
Plymouth Albion v Macclesfield
Macclesfield take the long trip to Plymouth Albion this weekend looking to bounce back from a heart breaking defeat against Birmingham Moseley last Saturday. The Blues were beaten by a last minute Penalty Try and the Cheshire side now must take the positives from that loss and bring them to the south-coast tomorrow.
Macc currently occupy 15th place in the table following promotion from National Two North. Two wins from their first 12 matches leaves them only two points from safety, but they are yet to win away from home. Added to that, Macclesfield will be looking to quickly forgot about their last away game where they were thumped 76-30 by Loughborough Students.
It will be a huge task for Macc to get a result tomorrow especially against a Plymouth Albion side bang in form. Dan Parkes’ men have won their last four matches which has seen them move up to third in the table and just two points behind Birmingham Moseley. Albion have also won all six of their games at Brickfields this season and you wouldn’t bet against them making that seven this weekend.
Ampthill and District v Blaydon
Fifth placed Ampthill and District host Blaydon this weekend with the north-east side aiming to continue their recent positive performances in National One. The Crows have been languishing in the relegation zone for much of this season, but their last four matches have shown what they are capable of.
Two wins as well as valiant displays against Coventry and Plymouth Albion has certainly boosted the morale at Blaydon and they head to Bedfordshire this weekend just two points from safety. However, they do remain bottom of the table and without an away victory this season, but there are shoots of recovery occurring for Blaydon.
Ampthill defeated Hull Ionians away from home last week to further cement their fifth place position in the table. The A’s have been a bit inconsistent recently but back to back wins could be the catalyst for Ampthill to return to their early season form.
The men from Dillingham Park have won eight times this season and have picked up four wins from their six matches on home turf thus far. They are usually strong in front of their own supporters and will fancy their chances of another victory at home this weekend.
Rosslyn Park v Coventry
Two in-form sides prepare to do battle this weekend in National One has Coventry make the trip down to the South East to take on Rosslyn Park.
The hosts began this season very poorly as they won just one of their first five matches, but since then, the only way has been up for Park. They have won four of their last five games including excellent wins over Blackheath and Esher which has seen them move into the top half of the table.
They sit two places and six points behind their visitors this weekend who have been excellent in recent weeks. Five wins from their last games including an encouraging win over Cambridge leaves Coventry currently occupying sixth place in the table.
However, just one of their seven victories this term has come away from home so they’ll be keen to put that right this weekend when they head to the capital.
Old Albanian v Fylde
The Old Albanian welcome Fylde to Woolams this weekend looking to build on their hard-fought victory against Esher six days ago. The newly-promoted side are holding their own since winning the National Two play-off in May as they currently sit ninth in the table after 12 matches.
The OA’s have won five of those games so far, but just two of them have come at home. In fact, James Shanahan’s side have picked up just two wins from their last eight matches so back to back victories for the first time since September would certainly be a welcome gift for the OA’s.
As for Fylde, their four game winning run at home came to an end last Saturday against Rosslyn Park, despite a valiant display in the second-half. They now head to St Albans sitting 11th in the table, but they are only three points behind their hosts.
Paul Arnold’s side have won two of their last five games, but worryingly they have lost all five of their away matches this season. The Lancashire outfit will be eager to amend that this weekend as they look to move further up the division.
Darlington Mowden Park v Esher
Another side that has had trouble on the road this season are Esher as they make the long trip to the Arena this weekend to take on Darlington Mowden Park.
Esher currently occupy 10th place in the league with four wins to their name thus far. However, all four of their wins have come at home meaning the Surrey based side have failed to taste victory on their travels as they have lost all five of their away matches. But, they may feel as though they can break their duck this weekend against a Darlington side that are in wretched form.
The home side this weekend have lost their last six matches which will give Esher encouragement that they can secure their maiden away victory. DMP lost 74-0 to Hartpury College last week so will be desperate for a reaction this Saturday.
The hosts have had a long list of injuries this term which does go some way to explaining their position of 13th place in the table as things stand. Darlington are two points clear of the drop zone, but another defeat this weekend could see them fall into the bottom three if other results go against them.
Cambridge v Hull Ionians
Cambridge play host to Hull Ionians this weekend at Volac Park looking for a positive response to their heavy defeat against Coventry six days ago whilst the visitors are in need of a victory.
Hull Ionians are struggling this season after meeting their goal of survival in 2015/16. The I’s are in the relegation zone as things stand on 17 points having won just three times all term. One of those victories came on their travels against Macclesfield at the end of September, but since then, the men from Brantingham Park have lost seven of their last eight games. They need to halt this slide quickly otherwise it could become costly for the Yorkshire side.
As for Cambridge, promotion from National Two South hasn’t fazed them as yet. The Blood and Sand occupy 12th in the table and are eight points clear of the bottom three as things stand. Ross Stewart took over the reins from Rowland Winer in the summer and has done a sturdy job up to now as he has guided his team to four wins so far this term.
However, they have won just one of their last five games with their most recent victory actually coming in their last home game against Fylde so Cambridge will looking to produce a similar performance tomorrow if they are to put a much more positive slant on their recent form.
