Knights v Chiefs

Doncaster Knights contest round 3 of the promotion playoffs this weekend at Castle Park, with the prize at the end of the road a place in the promised land of the Guinness Premiership.

The 3pm Kick off at Castle Park has Exeter Chiefs visit the home of the Knights, topping the table but only on points difference. So far every home team has managed a win at home in the two previous rounds but perennial promotion candidates Exeter Chiefs will prove the sternest test of that record this weekend. The Chiefs finished second only to Bristol Rugby in stage 1 of the RFU Championship, scoring a massive 699 points over the 22 games. This was a full 69 points more than the table topping Bristol managed in the competition.

“In all seriousness, the game plan is to go out and score more than they do” a buoyant Brett Davey was quoted as saying during training, “sometimes a game can boil down to as simple a plan as that”.

Doncaster’s prized defensive record, which aided them in their stunning win over Nottingham Rugby, will be tested by the attacking prowess of the Devon side. Disconcertingly for the Knights Exeter have a meaner defence, conceding 28 points less than the South Yorkshire side leaked during what was defence wise a successful campaign.

Speaking to Lynn Howells on the run up to the game, he also gave a heartfelt opinion, “Saturday will require one of those performances that true players can pull of the bag when it matters” The Welsh Director of Rugby continued “with the challenge of the playoffs, every single game you come across is one of those games”.

With few new injury problems the majority of the side which faced Nottingham will be available, on a high after a game many said was one of the best performances at Castle Park this season. The crowd reaction to the performance drove the Knights on to an eventual win, and the players will look to the stands for more of the same support this weekend.

You can purchase tickets for this game online at www.drfc.co.uk and check out the Knights Squadcast on 107.9 TRAX FM at 6.30pm Friday evening for the team news.