Preston Grasshoppers look to tame Sheffield Tigers at home

Both clubs have lost four out of five to date and they sit side by side in 10th and 11th places in National League Two North. The Tigers have the edge by virtue of one more bonus point than Hoppers.

If this year’s form predicts a close encounter, so too do their most recent meetings; in 2019/20, Hoppers won 10-9 at home and lost 10-11 in Sheffield.

Hoppers head coach Joel Unsworth said that, despite another heavy defeat a fortnight ago, “the lads are holding up well”, with the incentive of going above the Tigers with a win tomorrow.

“We’ve had a couple of low-key sessions in the time off and training has been good this week.”

Hoppers change both locks, with Luke Procter unavailable and Ally Murray fighting for full fitness. So the second row this week comprises Ewan Naylor and newcomer Will Riley, from Sale Sharks.

The bench includes another Sale player, Harry Thompson. At the other end of the Two North table, it’s 1st against 3rd when Fylde visit Rotherham TItans.

The Yorkshiremen have won four out of five, losing only at Hull Ionians, where Fylde themselves had a 34-31 victory three weeks ago. The men from Ansdell retain the league’s only 100% record, including all five bonus points, and the clubs’ scoring records so far make interesting reading; the Titans have run up 205 points to Fylde’s 206, while conceding 75, three fewer than tomorrow’s visitors.

Last season’s fixtures both went with home advantage, Rotherham winning 28-13 on their own patch before losing 17-21 at Ansdell and finishing third to Fylde’s fifth.

In Regional Two North West, Vale of Lune travel to Glossop, where they suffered a heavy defeat, 27-0, last season, although they won the home fixture equally comfortably, 29-10.

This year, Glossop have won three out of five to sit fifth in the table, while Vale’s two victories and three defeats leave them ninth.Hoppers: Brown; Spence, Keohane, Browne, Clapham; Pearson, Moulding; Madden, Taylor, Trippier, Naylor, Riley, Gale, Dorrington, Richardson. Replacements: Thompson, Orry, Fryer (or Murray), Swarbrick, Rourke.