TABLE TOPPERS Jersey RFC are looking for a 12th consecutive league win as they welcome a struggling Reading to their St Peter fortress.
After a superb demolition of promotion rivals Tottonians in the last match, Myles Landick’s side will be full of confidence coming into this game.
Jersey currently sit comfortably top of the league, 11 points ahead of Tottonians and boast a 100% win record so far, along with a full house of bonus points in the Regional 2 South Central League.
The Islanders are also the highest scorers in the league, while also having conceded the second fewest points.
However, they will be without hat-trick hero from last match, Scott Van Breda, and Bryn Edwards, who will be sidelined for a while after suffering a serious ankle injury against Tottonians.
Opponents Reading have had a very different season. Back in the 90s, they were playing tier-three rugby against the likes of Coventry, Exeter, Richmond and Rosslyn Park. But now, with just two wins from their 11 games, they are rooted to the bottom of the table in tier six of the national league system, five points behind the next lowest side Salisbury.
Reading have conceded the second highest number of points, while also scoring the least number of points in the league themselves.
RFC coach Myles Landick said: “The win over Tottonians was superb, but every game in this league is challenging.
“We need to keep our standards high, especially against the teams lower down the league.
“If we put in a solid performance, this will be an excellent chance for another win.”
The two sides have already met in the league this season, with Jersey travelling to Reading in early September, where they secured a reasonably comfortable 34-15 win.
This Reading side have shown fight in recent weeks however, pulling off a shock win over fourth-placed London Irish Wild Geese just two fixtures ago. Which Reading team turn up will depend on what players they have available.
Landick’s side will be looking to get through this game unscathed and avoid a potential banana skin. League leading try scorer George Willmott is also unavailable, but the likes of Nathan Rogers, who scored two against Tottonians, will be hoping to add to their impressive tallies.
Jersey RFC squad: George Thomas, Jack Macfarlane, Tom Wilson, Jack Preston, Tom Tilstone, Evan Whitson, Tim Corson, Roy Godfrey, Callum Cuthbert, Aaron Penberthy, Nathan Rogers, Dom Mayo, Tom Bulfin, Sam Harvey, Charlie Hubert Replacements: Nathan Thomas, Cam Halliwell, Max Harrington
Regional 2 South Central
P W D L F A Diff TB LB Pts
Jersey 11 11 0 0 507 212 295 11 0 55
Tottonians 11 9 0 2 416 236 180 7 1 44
Winchester 11 7 1 3 368 193 175 10 2 42
Wild Geese 11 7 0 4 370 327 43 8 3 39
Guildford 11 5 1 5 387 280 107 9 1 32
Farnham 11 4 0 7 358 299 59 9 5 30
Witney 11 5 0 6 221 221 0 5 4 29
Newbury Blues 11 5 0 6 212 304 -92 4 0 24
Wimborne 11 3 1 7 225 372 -147 5 2 21
Chichester 11 3 1 7 194 265 -71 3 2 19
Salisbury 11 3 0 8 183 468 -285 3 0 15
Reading 11 2 0 9 139 403 -264 1 1 10
