Doncaster, Determination and
Dambusters
Two determined teams will run out at St Peter at two minutes to
three on Saturday, both sides anxious to prove they can cut it at
Championship level.
Jersey's drive comes after successive 11th-placed finishes in
their first two seasons at level two, and on the back of a
disappointing performance last weekend, when a 3-19 lead at Moseley
was wiped away and the match ended 22-all.
Doncaster are back in the Championship after a year down in
National One, and are playing the team who effectively sent them
down - a 13-10 defeat at St Peter in April 2013 having proved
crucial in keeping Jersey away from the relegation trap-door, which
opened for the Knights a week later.
The Yorkshire club's opening league match of the new season saw an
impressive 27-6 win over Plymouth Albion at Castle Park. Lock Tyler
Hotson, captain and flanker Michael Hills and full-back Paul Jarvis
scored tries, while winger Dougie Flockhart claimed 12 points with
five successful kicks.
In August, the Knights had a busy pre-season schedule and enjoyed
trips to Neath (15-15) and Tynedale (14-41) as well as hosting
Swansea, who were defeated 76-5, and a Newcastle Falcons side made
up of a mix of academy and first team talent (another win by
40-26).
The Jersey players met supporters in Royal Square, St Helier on
Wednesday and were sharing the disappointment of Moseley with those
who hadn't been able to make the trip. The determination to get
into winning ways was palpable, and the home support will be
looking for delivery of the goods on Saturday afternoon.
News from the Jersey camp
Jersey's team for the clash with Doncaster Knights at St Peter
shows three changes to the starting line-up from last weekend's
22-22 draw at Moseley.
The back row unit is the area where Harvey Biljon has made the
majority of his changes, with Ben Maidment (pictured
below) coming in at blindside in place of the injured Nick
Haining, while Michael Noone gets the nod at number 8 ahead of
Paula Kaho.
Ryan Hodson completes the Jersey back-row, retaining the number
7 shirt, and the captaincy, from last weekend as Alex Rae is once
again named among the replacements; the club captain continues to
work his way back to full match fitness and has been obliged to
wait his turn thanks to the continued good form of Dave Markham and
Pierce Phillips in the second row.
The only other change to the starting XV sees Jack Burroughs come
in ahead of Ed Dawson at left wing. Six of Jersey's replacements
from the opening weekend will again be on the bench, with the
addition of Kaho as a swap with Noone.
"Selection hasn't been a great deal easier this week, but I felt
the platform established by those who started against Moseley was a
strong one, and should have led to a victory, so most of those
players are back in the team sheet."
JRFC 1st XV vs Doncaster Knights (H), Greene King
IPA Championship
Saturday September 13th, 2014, k-o 3pm
Replacements
16. Ignacio Lancuba
17. Gareth Harris
18. Danny Herriot
19. Alex Rae
20. Paula Kaho
21. Nicky Griffiths
22. Mark McCrea
Any Previous? (click for links)
November 30th, 2012 - Doncaster 22 Jersey 17
April 13th, 2013 - Jersey 13 Doncaster
10
Doncaster - a potted history
Formed: 1875
Back in the day: the club had various homes during the
first 50 years of its existence, and then spent around 30 years
sharing a home with the Doncaster Cricket Club before moving to the
site of their present home in the 1950s - the now very
well-appointed rugby ground and conference facility Castle
Park.
Famous sons: Director of Rugby Clive Griffiths was an
accomplished full-back in his day, but his way into the Welsh team
was blocked by the great JPR Williams. Griffiths earned one cap,
replacing the great man mid-way through a Five Nations win over
England in 1979
Jersey connection: he'd like to have been included in the
category above, but Jersey Forwards Coach Steve Boden made around
200 appearances for the club until he moved to Jersey in summer
2012, and scored 18 tries for Knights, including 10 in 2007/08,
while Nicky Griffiths played a season at Castle Park in 2009/10.
Former Jersey full-back Glenn Bryce spent last season with
Doncaster, but has since left the club and returned to his native
Scotland and joined Glasgow Warriors.
Silverware: The Yorkshire Shield in 1979, and of course
National One in April of this year
League History: Doncaster made a meteoric rise up the
English rugby pyramid after leagues were introduced in 1987.
Starting in Yorkshire Division Two (Level 10), by 2005 they had
reached Level Two, where they spent eight seasons until relegation
in 2013
The Greene King IPA Championship this
weekend
Some people have insisted on referring to league positions after a
single game, in fact this pointless exercise was even going on last
Saturday and Sunday morning before four teams had even played a
game. Suffice to say those teams who won will be looking to
maintain their 100% records, while last weekend's losers will be
seeking to turn things around.
On Saturday Worcester host Moseley, Rotherham travel to Bedford
and Plymouth are at home to Nottingham. Sunday's games are
Yorkshire Carnegie against Bristol and Cornish Pirates v London
Scottish.
A full preview can be seen HERE
And Finally
Jersey Athletic won 15-19 last week against French side Coutances,
and this weekend they travel to Barnes for a Zoo Shield match on
Saturday, while on Sunday Jersey Colts play their first match of
the season, away to Trojans.
Jersey's 1st team squad players will be looking to draw
inspiration from the privilege of getting up close and personal
with the only two Lancaster bombers still flying. The chance came
on Thursday ahead of the Battle of Britain Air Display, when the
Canadian Lancaster joined its British 'Dambuster' counterpart in
the skies over the Island - the first time this had happened since
1956 and quite possibly the last.
Enjoy your weekend's rugby
Tom Innes
