Sedgeley Park v Cornish Pirates 14/10/06 match preview

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Park v Pirates

Sedgley Park v Cornish Pirates
Saturday October 14th 2006 kick Off 1500

Pirates coach Jim McKay has told his players they will need to be at their "very best" if they want to emerge with victory against Sedgley Park tomorrow.

The Pirates recorded their first away win of the season at Doncaster last Saturday - and McKay is seeking a similar reward from this weekend's encounter at Park Lane.

However, past experiences have told the affable Aussie that claiming such a bounty from their Manchester-based hosts is far from easy. Indeed, on their past two visits, the Pirates have travelled with high hopes only to be undone by some stern Park resistance.

Two seasons ago Park narrowly edged home 28-27, while last season it was no better as the visiting Cornishmen crashed to a 31-21 reverse.

McKay, though, is never one to look to the past, insisting it's the future which remains his key priority. He said: "They could have beat us ten times, we could have beat them ten times, it's all in the past and counts for nothing now.

"Our focus is on this weekend and making sure that we build on last week's win at Doncaster. Sedgley Park, though, are a very dangerous team with a very aggressive pack, so we will give them all the respect they deserve. And by all accounts they did well against Leeds last weekend, so I'm sure they'll be well up for facing us this week."

He added: "They've got people like Phil Jones, who is one of the best tens in the division, and Andy Craig who is a Scottish international in the centre, so they have some very good players in their side.

"They may be near the bottom of the table, but they'll have nothing to lose against us this weekend and that makes them very dangerous opponents."

Coach Jim McKay

The Pirates, however, will travel in buoyant mood following their impressive success in Yorkshire a week ago. McKay sticks with a largely unchanged squad, the only difference in the starting line-up is the inclusion of Lewis Vinnicombe for Jon Hylton, who suffered concussion in that game.


Lewis Vinnicombe for Jonny Hylton	Tim Cowley returns to the side

On the bench, Tim Cowley returns to the side in place of Chris Cracknell (knee), while Sam Betty is also included as an additional forward in place of Henry Barratt.

"Lewis comes in as a straight swap for Jonny Hylton who picked up a bang in the first half last week," explained McKay yesterday. "James Moore did really well when he came on last week, but he'll start on the bench as he can offer cover at nine, ten and on the wing."

Otherwise, it's a familiar looking Pirates line-up from that of recent weeks. Although McKay was keen to stress that competition for places, both in the pack and behind, was "pretty intense".

He said: "We've got lots of options at the moment, which is good. Both the centre and the back-row positions are particularly strong, so it's up to all the guys to make their mark."

It's a point which has been echoed by assistant coach Mark Hewitt, who added:

"We had to work very hard at Doncaster and we will have to do so again. We have got to make sure we play with the same intensity.

"It is another big challenge and it is a place where we have not had much success before.

You certainly cannot underestimate them and we will give them every respect."

Mark Hewitt

Assistant coach Mark Hewitt

Pirates Team

15 Adryan Winnan - 14 Rhodri McAtee - 13 Duncan Roke - 12 Duncan Bell - 11 Lewis Vinnicombe
10 Alberto Di Bernardo - 9 Gavin Cattle(Capt) - 8 Matt Evans - 7 Iva Motusaga - 6 Stan McKeen
5 Joe Beardshaw - 4 Heino Senekal - 3 Sam Heard - 2 Viliami Ma’asi - 1 Alan Paver


Adryan Winnan 15	Rhodri McAtee 14	Duncan Roke 13	Duncan Bell 12	Lewis Vinnicombe 11

Alberto Di Bernardo 10	Gavin Cattle (Capt) 9	Matt Evans 8	Iva Motusaga 7	Stan McKeen 6

Joe Beardshaw 5	Heino Senekal 4	Sam Heard 3	Viliami Ma’asi 2	Alan Paver 1