Broadstreet RFC

On Saturday Broadstreet RFC welcome Hereford RFC to Coventry for a first team game in what will be Hereford's second visit to the Street's Ivor Preece Field. Hereford and Broadstreet have faced each other on a number of occasions in the Midlands leagues, but in fact have not met since Street's first promotion season to the National Leagues in 2001-2, when we managed to do the double, including a very tight 13-9 victory at Wyeside in January 2002. A game in which Prop Russ Morgan came off the bench in the fourth quarter to make his Street debut and after a couple of minutes was yellow carded, thus taking no further part in the proceedings!

In last season's re-emergence at Level Five, Hereford finished comfortably mid-table, winning exactly half of their games, nine at home and four away, with a points difference over the whole season close to parity with just minus seven. Fly-Half Dean Powell scored 151 points including 32 conversions and 24 penalties and wing Sean Day ran in twelve tries. Hereford's two meetings in 2009-10 with local rivals and eventual Champions, Luctonians RFC, resulted in a narrow 20-28 loss in front of 1,200 onlookers at home at Wyeside and an even more noteworthy 5-5 draw away at Kingsland at the end of March, particularly impressive when you consider that Lucs were straining every sinew at the time in an effort to gain promotion to the National Leagues.

The Wyesiders are “aiming to be the best truly amateur club in England” and are committed to producing their own talent in-house, but have had a disappointing start to the 2010-11 campaign with four straight defeats, including an agonising three point loss to fourth-placed Peterborough RFC, so they will be eager to kick-start their season with a win against the Street.

It is quite possible that we will be facing our friend on the wing, Perry Pudge, who featured prominently in our promotion-winning 2008-9 squad while studying at Loughborough University.· Perry also kindly helped us out in an emergency capacity during the last campaign, despite suffering an injury-ravaged season himself and now having graduated has returned closer to his roots, appearing at centre in all of Hereford's games so far·this season.

Broadstreet will be aiming to eradicate the defensive frailties so apparent at the start of last Saturday's game and hoping for the return of a number of influential players including, from illness Simon Morris, Brett Chatwin & Stewart Hendry. and from injury Damian Taylor, Mark Schropfer, Luke Truslove &·Nick Bingham, to help to return to winning ways.

Broadstreet Seconds will also be at home this Saturday versus Derby RFC. Fresh from·over-powering Silhillians RUFC Seconds in the Preliminary Round of the Warwickshire Second Team Cup and having been beaten in their two previous Saturday outings this season, both non-league affairs in Northamptonshire, they will be looking forward to this first league encounter, having suffered two postponements versus Rugby Lions RFC and Nuneaton RFC.

Broadstreet Thirds face Newbold RFC Seconds at Parkfield Road, Newbold-on-Avon in Street's third Warwickshire One league match of the season, looking to maintain the top position they have in the division, by virtue of a larger points' difference compared to Stratford RFC Seconds.

All three games are due to kick-off at 3:00 pm.