Hartpury looking to continue their flare
As we approach Bonfire Night this weekend, there is one team that continues to produce some sparkling rugby at that is league leaders Hartpury College who are on course to take this division by storm.
College have the chance to make it 10 wins from 10 this Saturday as they look to continue their perfect start to the season. Trying to keep track of John Barnes’ men are Birmingham Moseley who, despite having lost just once this campaign, sit eight points behind the table toppers as things stand.
Third placed Blackheath will be hoping to return to winning ways in Round 10 while Plymouth Albion and Ampthill look to close the gap on the top three.
Elsewhere, Macclesfield will be desperate for a victory this weekend as they fell to the foot of the division six days ago as the teams above the Blues aim to move away from danger as we end the first third of this season.
Hartpury College v Rosslyn Park
Hartpury College will be looking to make it the perfect 10 this weekend as they welcome Rosslyn Park to Gloucester aiming to continue their faultless start to the National One campaign.
College have picked up maximum points from their first nine games of the season leaving them eight points clear at the summit even at this early stage of the season. However, John Barnes’ men are fully aware that this fixture against Rosslyn Park will not be a straight forward task as the visitors on Saturday are also going through a decent spell of form.
Granted, it’s not as emphatic at Hartpury’s run of results, but just one defeat in their last four games signals a change in fortunes for Park who had a torrid start to the term. Rosslyn beat Macclesfield in Round Eight and followed it up by producing a brilliant performance against an in-form Blackheath side last time out.
Park have now moved out of the relegation zone and currently occupy 12th. Their last two results have been major plus points for the men from The Rock, but victory this weekend would top the lot as Park aim to continue their momentum.
Birmingham Moseley v Loughborough Students
Birmingham Moseley are doing their upmost to try and hunt down Hartpury College at the top of National One. Moseley, who were relegated from the Championship in May, currently find themselves eight points off the promotion place despite accumulating eight wins from their first nine games.
That just highlights how dominant Hartpury have been, but Kevin Maggs’ side will continue to focus on getting their job done and their next task is against Loughborough Students at Billesley Common. Moseley have won all four of their games on home turf and will provide a stern test for the Students.
Loughborough take the 51 mile trip to Moseley this weekend looking to recapture the good form which they produced in October. Before last weekend, the Midlands side were unbeaten in three matches and found themselves fifth in the table, but defeat to Plymouth Albion means they are now down to seventh.
Loughborough are certainly performing above expectations at present and are once again on their travels this weekend looking for their fifth win of the campaign. The Students have won just twice on the road this term and a victory against Birmingham Moseley tomorrow would arguably be their best result of the season to date.
Blackheath v Old Albanian
Blackheath suffered a Halloween bump last weekend as their excellent unbeaten run ended abruptly and the men from Wells Hall will looking to bounce back this Saturday.
Club’s seven match winning streak was halted by Rosslyn Park six days ago, but they remain third in the table after this slight setback. Blackheath are now four points behind Birmingham Moseley and will feel confident of returning to winning ways as they aim to secure their fifth straight victory at their new home this weekend.
Their opponents this Saturday are newly-promoted the Old Albanian. Having spoken to coach James Shanahan earlier in the season, a strong core of this side remains from last season as they achieved promotion from National Two South and so far, they are having a mixed time of things at this level.
The OA’s sit slap-bang in the middle of the table having won four of their nine matches this term. They put a halt to a four game losing run last weekend with a sparkling performance against Macclesfield so they will be in better spirts as they head to Blackheath this weekend aiming to upset the odds.
Hull Ionians v Plymouth Albion
Hull Ionians have had tough season so far in National One. The I’s have fallen into the bottom three in the division having won just three of their first nine matches of the campaign, but it is their recent form which they need to put right quickly.
The men from Brantingham Park have won just one of their last five games which leaves them 14th in the table and three points from safety at this early stage of the season. Last weekend, they were blown away by Coventry and it doesn’t get much easier for the East Yorkshire outfit as they host an in-form Plymouth Albion side this Saturday.
Albion are currently enjoying life under new Head Coach Dan Parkes. Parkes himself will be delighted with how his first nine games at the helm at Brickfields has gone as Plymouth sit fourth in the table with six wins to their name.
Having said this, Parkes will keen to recapture the early consistency his side produced as Albion take the long-trip north this weekend having won three and lost two of their last five matches. Both of those defeats have come on the road and in fact, Albion have won just one of their four games away from home so they will be keen to begin translating their excellent home record on their travels, starting with this weekend.
Fylde v Ampthill and District
Fylde will be looking to respond from their defeat to Blaydon last weekend as they return to Woodlands to host Ampthill and District. Currently 10th in National One with three wins from their first nine matches, Paul Arnold’s men are back on home soil this Saturday where all their joy has come this season.
Fylde’s victories have all been in front of their own supporters with wins against Esher, Plymouth Albion and Hull Ionians all coming in the last five weeks. That win against Albion shows that Fylde can go toe-to-toe with one of the strongest sides in the division and they will have to produce a similar performance when Ampthill come to Lancashire tomorrow.
Ampthill’s good display at home to Esher last week saw them pick up a much needed 29-24 victory to end a run of two straight defeats. With their season now seemingly back on track, the A’s go to Woodlands this weekend looking for their seventh win of the season to keep the pressure on the teams above them.
The Bedfordshire side have won three times on their travels so far this term and they will be eager to make that four when they take the 400-mile round trip to Fylde this weekend.
Coventry v Blaydon
Coventry welcome Blaydon to the Butts Park Arena on Saturday looking to continue the good form which they produced towards the end of last month. Rowland Winter’s men had been going through a sticky spell, but three straight wins has propelled Cov into the top six and they will be keen to carry on their positive run of results.
They picked up their first away win six days ago with a brilliant victory against Hull Ionians and they are back on home turf this weekend where they have won four of their five games so far.
Blaydon make the long trip south tomorrow, but do so in high spirits. Their maiden win against Fylde last weekend lifted Mickey Ward’s men off the foot of the National One table and now they must regain their focus and look to upset the odds in the Midlands on Saturday.
Four of Blaydon’s seven defeats this season have come away from home so they must improve on that sooner rather than later to help them move out of the relegation zone. They are currently eight points from safety and Blaydon will have to be at their very best if they are to have any chance of reducing that gap this weekend.
Esher v Cambridge
Two wins and two defeats in their last four games may suggest Esher are having a tough time of things, but those results over the last four weeks have been positive for the Surrey-based club who looked to have turned a corner.
Their season began slowly with just one win from their first five games, but since then they have picked up 13 points from possible 20 leading to Esher moving out of the bottom three and up to ninth in the table. This weekend they host Cambridge and Esher’s three victories this term have all come on home soil so they will be confident heading into this clash.
As for Cambridge, they do currently sit on the cusp of the relegation zone, but they are only a point behind Esher heading into this fixture. Ross Stewart’s men have had an OK start to life in National One following promotion from National Two South in May as they have picked up three wins from their first six matches.
The Blood and Sand have only won one of their last four games in a run which has included heavy defeats against the top two sides in the division. They travel to Surrey this weekend aiming for their second away win of the term – their first coming just under two months ago against Rosslyn Park – as they look to manoeuvre themselves out of any potential trouble at the wrong end of the table.
Macclesfield v Darlington Mowden Park
Macclesfield host Darlington Mowden desperate for a victory at Priory Park this weekend. Since promotion from National Two North in May, the first nine games at this level have been tough for Head Coach Giles Heagerty as Macc currently sit bottom of the table on 10 points, with just one victory to their name.
That win came against Fylde in Round Two and their only other plus point this season came away at Blaydon where they picked up a draw in the north-east. All of their other seven games have ended in defeat, but the Blues have been scoring a lot of points this season which is encouraging for the Cheshire side.
What they now need to do is tighten up their defence and they will hope to achieve this against a DMP side that has had trouble on their travels thus far this term. Darlington head to Macclesfield this weekend currently lying in 12th place having won four of their nine games this campaign.
Three of those matches have come at the Arena with their sole victory on the road coming in Round Three against a strong Ampthill and District side. DMP have been unable to replicate that performance since then, but will feel they can get something from their trip to Cheshire this Saturday against a Macc side low on confidence.
