Westoe head into the Lions' den
WESTOE travel down the M1 tomorrow into the den of the Leicester Lions.
A hard and evenly-fought encounter is in prospect as the two clubs have a remarkably similar National 2 North record in the ten games so far.
Both got off to a shaky start but have really turned their fortunes around, the East Midlands side having won their last four games and Gareth Nesbit's men have been victorious in five of their last six outings.
And they each have six wins under their belt, though fifth-top Westoe have collected nine bonus points – only league leaders Loughborough Students have as many – which puts them a place ahead of the Lions who have seven.
Leicester, of course, have home advantage and the Dunes Adventure Island-sponsored Shieldsmen face a near 200-mile coach trip to their Lutterworth Road ground - post code LE8 4DY for the benefit of those with Sat-Nav.
And not since the first home game of the season – when Broadstreet hung on to a 27-25 lead in a real nail-biter – have their colours been lowered on their own turf, with Huddersfield, Fylde and Macclesfield having all come to grief there since then.
Commenting on tomorrow's clash, Nesbit said: "It will be a big test for they are strong at home but we are well capable of getting a result.
"It is all about getting the preparation right and playing to our full potential.
"And we have to do it for the full 80 minutes because on Saturday the vast difference was revealed between when we get things right and when we do not.
"We have good players who have shown that we can win games at this level, but we need to negotiate 30 games over a season and that's a big challenge for the squad.
"The trick is for everyone to be clued into what we are trying to do so that when they get their chance they can pick up where the man they replaced left off."
Chris Clark returns on the wing after his Singapore Sevens adventure and links up with twin James at outside centre – a pairing that has much to do with Westoe's escalating reputation for ingenuity and flair as well as fleetness in the backs.
A bonus point for scoring four or more tries in each of the last seven games will not have gone unnoticed by opponents.
The industrious Nesbit, a true 80-minute man, is being given a little respite by starting on the bench, with experienced lock Paul Bird named captain.
Meanwhile, there was good news as centre David Haswell (broken elbow) and his younger brother, utility back Graeme (cracked rib), were back in training this week.
* Supporters should note that kick off is at 2pm.
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Weather for South Shields
Friday 25 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 8 C to 19 C
Wind Speed: 12 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 7 C to 17 C
Wind Speed: 12 mph
Wind direction: North east
