London Skolars take on London Broncos this Saturday 30th January in their annual pre-season match at the New River Sport & Fitness Centre, Wood Green.
Both teams have bolstered their playing squads with new signings in the off season and will be looking for improved performances in 2016.
Skolars’ Head Coach, Jermaine Coleman, has named a similar side to the team that took a Wigan Warriors XII at the Capital Challenge last week. The team will be boosted by the inclusion of a few key players who return from injury.
“We’ll run with a similar side to last week and give some game time to a few players who need a run. Dave Williams and Michael Sykes are back from injury, so we’ll look to get them some game time as well’’ says Coleman.
“We’ve got a couple of guys like Erjon Dollapi and Joe Ridley that have joined us this year so we’re looking for a big year from them individually and I know they are excited about the year ahead.’’
“Pre-season has gone well so far. The boys have really bought into the culture and the environment we’re building at the club. Like any new process there are hiccups and bumps along the way but overall I’m happy with the effort and desire we’ve shown as a group.”
Similarly, Broncos Head Coach Andrew Henderson, has strengthened his squad with new player signings in the off season including Mark Offerdahl, Nathan Stapleton, Mark Ioane but will likely give a lot of younger guys a chance to impress.
Being one of only a few full-time teams in the Championship, the Broncos will be looking for a top 4 finish this season.
Despite suffering a loss in their first hit out last week, Skolars’ Coach Coleman was pleased to see the team execute some of the things they’ve been working on during the preseason.
“I thought we acquitted ourselves well in the game against Wigan. I thought our defence was good and I was happy with the condition the boys were in. For a first run out I was pretty happy with our overall game but there’s certainly areas we’ll continue to work hard at.”
Buoyed by that performance, Skolars are expecting another challenging game against a well prepared Broncos outfit and will be looking to continue their pre-season preparation.
“I think like all pre-season games for me, it’s about taking another step forward in our preparation for the season ahead.’’
“The ‘London Clash’ fixture is an opportunity to start the ball rolling and I expect they (Broncos) will be fit and very slick.’’
Coach Coleman has named an extended bench for the weekend game.
Skolars Team
1) Alex Anthony
2) John Paxton
3) Aaron Small
4) Joe Price
5) Jimmy Morgan
6) Chris Bishay
7) Charlie Lawrence
Erjon Dollapi9) Ben Pointer
10) Ben Gray
11) Mike Worrincy
12) Will Lovell
13) Eddie Mbaraga
14) Dave Williams
15) Cairen Clement-Pascal
16) Sam Druce
17) Mike Greenhalgh
18) Michael Sykes
19) Lameck Juma
20) Jermaine Coleman
21) Andy Winfield
22) Kazeem Fatouri-Edwards
The match kicks off at 3pm at New River Sport and Fitness, White Hart Lane, Wood Green, this Saturday 30th January.
Match Tickets to the game are available on the gate on the day. £12 Adult £6 concession.