Reds eye double over leaders

Whitchurch journey to league leaders Bromsgrove tomorrow with their sights set on a sensational double scalp.

It was the Reds' 29-11 victory over Bromsgrove on the first day of November that gave their season a much needed shot in the arm.

That was Whitchurch's first success of the campaign against a Bromsgrove side previously unbeaten.

Since then the north Shropshire men have gone from strength to strength, claiming three league wins from five encounters to climb up to ninth place in Midlands Two West.

"That win was a crucial turning point of our season," said Whitchurch spokesman John Gregory.

"We needed it - and it's bound to give us confidence at Finstall Park tomorrow.

"It's going to be a tough period for us because we've got second placed Burton the week after - but it's a chance for us to see how far we've come in these last few weeks.

"There's nine games to go, so let's get some wins and let's see what happens."

Newport coach Ian Bletcher has heaped praise on the healing hands of Emma Forrester ahead of tomorrow's home match against Malvern.

The club's 25-year-old physiotherapist has nursed a number of Newport's battle-worn players back to fitness in recent weeks.

And the Forrester magic touch will be called upon again this weekend, with the entire Fishes back row struggling with niggling knocks.

"Emma has worked wonders to get some of those players out onto the pitch," said Bletcher. "And she'll have to do it again this week because again we're struggling.

"Neil Weston is a doubt. We could really do with him coming through otherwise it's going to have to be a complete re-jig.

"It's a tough game for us. We had a real fantastic game last Saturday (19-15 win against Maidenhead in the EDF Intermediate Cup) and that could be a defining match for us.

"But most teams are capable of one big game - even England! Few teams can keep it going and that's the challenge for us now."

We can't afford any more slip-ups - that is the message from Shrewsbury veteran Mattie Morris as Newcastle (Staffs) visit Sundorne Castle.

Shrewsbury's title aspirations were dealt a severe blow last week with a 6-13 loss against Burntwood.

That was only Shrewsbury's second reverse of the campaign, but they must now win all of the remaining 10 - and hope that unbeaten Willenhall stumble at least once - if they are to be crowned champions of Midlands Four West (North).

"It's going be another tough game but we have to grind out the results now to stay in touch," said Morris, who has been demoted to the second team this week.

"Willenhall are bound to lose somewhere on the line, so we're still expecting it to go down to the wire.

"We have to work on making the most of our possession and not giving it away so easily."

Bridgnorth skipper Mike Preece has ordered his troops to tighten up at the back for their "must-win" clash at Bournville.

The All Blacks have a decent defensive record this season but shipped 31 points in a shock defeat at Old Saltleians in their last league outing - and were then beaten by Loughborough in the EDF Senior Vase last weekend.

Those errors must be dealt with for tomorrow's match at second place Bournville, whose only league defeat of the season came at Bridgnorth in November.

"Our defensive play has been our strongest asset this year," said Preece.

"But we have just been a bit leaky lately - we have let a few mistakes creep in and that's something we need to sort.

"We did well against them earlier in the season but we hear that they have strengthened since then.

"But we need a win if we are going to keep up our challenge until the end of the season."

Ludlow travel to lowly Stourbridge Lions confident that they have put their try scoring problems behind them.

The Linneymen are amongst the least prolific in the league but have scored well in their friendly matches over their five-week Christmas break.

"We're getting there and we're still hopeful of a top four finish," said captain Jake Parkes. "Well, you've got to aim high, haven't you?

"We seem to be back on the scoring trail now and this is a game we really should be looking to win."

By Sean Wozencroft