London Irish upbeat about play-off clash against Doncaster Knights

London Irish rugby director Nick Kennedy said his team is looking forward to the first leg of the semi-final clash against Doncaster Knight that kicks-off at Castle Park on 30th April.

Following the encounter, The Exiles will host Doncaster in the second leg of the play-off at Madejski Stadium on 6th May as they bid to return back to the Aviva Premiership from where they were relegated following the 2015/16 season.

Kennedy said he is satisfied with the preparations made leading to the encounter on Sunday.

“It feels like the longest pre-season ever and now we’re at the business end of the season with a tough game to prepare for.

“Both teams have had a couple of weeks to prepare for the game and we feel like we’re in a good place at the moment.”

London Irish have been the best team in this season's RFU Championship winning 19 out of the 20 games including a 5-22 win against Doncaster when they last met on 15th April but Kennedy believes the visitors will have their task cut out on Sunday.

“Doncaster are a well-coached team and work extremely hard for one another.

“When we played them last timeout they rested a few guys and we expect them to welcome those players back to the team this weekend.”