2E2-SPONSORED Douglas Rugby Club make the long trek to Buxton in the Peak District this weekend in South Lancs/Cheshire Division Two for their final fixture of 2012.
Douglas are smarting a little after last week’s defeat to Oswestry when they could and should have won.
However, they will not dwell on this and will hopefully get things back on track against a Buxton who visited Port-e-Chee a couple of weeks ago and, despite the scoreline, were no pushovers. They battled hard for every ball and Douglas will be expecting more of the same again from their hosts.
The Manx side welcome Glyn Hooson-Owen back after he opted out of the trip to Wales as precaution, while Craig Lea has joined the injured list but free-scoring centre convert Niall Killey should be available to add some bite in the backs. There won’t be too many changes to the Douglas line-up and Scott Goodall will hope his charges will bring home the points.
Douglas didn’t have fortune on their side and were a little sloppy against Oswestry and I’m sure all the players will not want another defeat which could increase the gap at the top even further.
The visitors just need that little bit of luck and to keep their heads on Saturday as Buxton are a strong outfit and will not roll over in their own back yard.
Douglas must front up to the opposition and take control of the game from the off. If they let Buxton get the front foot and go forward ball, then it could be a long day for the Manx side.