London Irish v Rotherham Match Preview
It's Grim up North
By Billy Hamilton
January 23 2003
This Sunday we take on 1st Division Rotherham in the Powergen Cup Quarter Final. This is a side, which over the last two seasons has proved its ability to attain Premiership status.
Powergen Cup Quarter Final
Madejski Stadium
Sunday 26th January KO 3pm
Last season Rotherham won promotion on the field but lost it in the Committee room. They were considered not to have fulfilled the criteria for membership of the elite. This season they have come out with all guns blazing to prove their ability once again. They are unbeaten in 16 games this season. This includes beating Bristol 24-19 in the last round of the Powergen Cup. In the league they have won all their 14 games and only trail leaders Worcester by two bonus points. They defeated Worcester by 39-13 earlier in the season. Their knack of scoring points is not in doubt as they have amassed a staggering 485 points in 14 league games, almost 35 per game. Their highest score this season is 102 points. In their only game since beating Bristol they beat Manchester 34-5 last weekend. This is a game which we must not treat lightly.
And what is our record as we go into this game? In December and January we have won five out of the seven games we have played. In the only slip-ups, and I use that word intentionally, we lost the away games to Newport and Edinburgh. The team will want to forget those mistakes and take the magnificent wins over Newcastle, Northampton and Toulouse as their inspiration for this weekend.
Further details of Rotherham RFC can be found on their website at www.rrufc.net and their supporters website at www.clubrrufc.co.uk