Newcastle Thunder v North Wales Crusaders and League 1 preview

Thunder v North Wales

North Wales make their second trip of the season to Blaydon on Sunday afternoon following their trip in February which resulted in a 60-0 victory for them in the 1895 Cup. They currently sit top of League 1, three points clear of Workington in second but they crucially have two games in hand and will look to strengthen their grip on League 1. The Welsh outfit have only lost once in the league this season going down to Swinton back in May. In the reverse league fixture earlier in the season North Wales came out 74-0 victors.

Following a change in ownership in the off-season the Crusaders have been building nicely as a club. We saw earlier in the season the damage that Carl Forster's can do, their big runners punch holes and quick ball allows the space to open up for their speedsters to cause damage. I expect the likes of experienced Ant Walker will look to carry hard and the test for Thunder is matching the physicality that the Welsh outfit will bring.

North Wales are also benefiting from stability and look to be in a good place as a club, this is helped by being top of the league no doubt. But they're already into their retention list for next season with players signing on for two years. This shows that the club is in a good place with the stability they're offering.

For Thunder, they'll be under no illusions as to the challenge that they face tomorrow afternoon. There were some definite frustrations last week at the final whistle, as ever I'll basically repeat what I said last week and would say every home game. Let's have a good go at North Wales and make sure they know they've been in a game.

At times last week we lacked a bit of composure which in a way is to be expected with such a young group. Hopefully some lessons have been learnt and we can hold our nerve at key points in the game. Squad wise, Evan Lawther is named in the squad and hopefully he's fit enough to make the starting team. Tyler Walton is available having had his disciplinary case thrown out following his red card against Swinton. There's also a couple of loans coming in from Castleford in back Daniel Sarbah and forward Woody Walker. James Farrar remains on loan from York and will look to continue his solid performance from last week.

Kick off tomorrow is 15:00 and as ever tickets will be available on the day. Hopefully everyone connected with North Wales has a safe trip up and we look forward to welcoming you to Blaydon tomorrow afternoon. I'm also aware that the Crusaders fans are looking to do their own tribute to Kevin Barlow, this will be appreciated by the Thunder faithful.

Swinton Lions v Midlands Hurricanes

Swinton come into this one on the back of a disappointing result for them losing at Dewsbury last weekend. They'll be looking to bounce back against a Midlands team who had last weekend off who know a victory can lift them up to third in the league above their opponents. This third versus fourth clash is sure to be a cracker, could home advantage be the crucial factor here?

Goole Vikings v Rochdale Hornets

Goole Vikings, the league's form team with four wins on the bounce finally play a home in Goole. They've also signed ex-Warrington winger Tom Lineham until the end of the season in a surprise transfer. I saw first hand how impressive Rochdale were last week and they'll need to be at their very best to get a victory at Goole. The Vikings are having a very good first season in League 1. Rochdale are heading towards the territory of needing to go on a run of winning games to put pressure on those above them in the race for the play-offs. This one will be feisty and something's telling me that Rochdale can edge this one.

Keighley Cougars v Whitehaven

Despite both these team's lowly league position and form struggles recently this is going to be an intriguing match at Cougar Park. Whitehaven lost at home to their west Cumbrian rivals Workington last weekend while Keighley lost a fiery encounter against Goole. I think Keighley will have enough to with home advantage to take this eighth versus ninth encounter.