Upbeat H&B tackle relegation rivals

Roberts: Confidence high at H & B

Article courtesy of Hastings Observer - 8/1/10

Hastings & Bexhill captain Roger Roberts says confidence is high going into a "must-win" game tomorrow (Saturday).

The rugby club will entertain London Three South East relegation rivals Whitstable in good heart despite a 33-10 defeat at home to Brighton last weekend.

Roberts said: "The guys were upbeat afterwards. That's how we envisage ourselves playing and that's where we want to be. If the first 15 minutes never occurred, it would've been anybody's game.

"After that I thought we had the majority of the possession and looked the dominant team. The guys upped their game, forwards and backs, and it was the first time we've played that well together.

"It was almost like they got a kick up the backside and pulled it out the bag. It was a good start to January and it's put everyone's confidence on a high."

H&B, nonetheless, slipped a place to second-from-bottom following their ninth defeat in 11 league outings. That was because Whitstable ended an eight-match losing run with a 17-5 victory at home to Folkestone.

"I definitely believe we can win," continued Roberts. "I think we can win every game this January really if we perform like we can, we've targeted this month to pick up a few points.

"They (Whitstable) are not that far above us, and we can't afford to drop points and give them points because it makes our struggle a bit harder. It's a must-win game really."

Whitstable's only other success to date came by a 23-12 margin in September's reverse fixture against an H&B side with whom they've contested a number of close battles in recent seasons.

Roberts added: "It was one of those games we came away from knowing we should've won it. They're hard physically and we've had some good games against them."

H&B expect to be slightly stronger availability-wise than for the Brighton clash. Richard Brooks and Mark Piotrowski should return, but Ryan Madigan is expected to miss out. Kick-off at William Parker Sports College is 2.15pm.