London Scottish have made 10 changes to the starting line-up for Saturday’s B&I Cup clash with Pontypridd at the Athletic Ground, 3pm kick-off, as coach James Buckland looks for a positive response following last week’s 27-20 defeat at Sardis Road.
Scottish rescued a losing bonus point at Ponty in round three of their Pool Two clash which keeps them in touch with the pool leaders.
A win for Pontypridd this week will put daylight between them and the rest of their rivals but the return of top try scorer Miles Mantella and captain Mark Bright to the Scottish starting line-up shows Buckland’s determination to exact swift revenge and boost their hopes of qualification.
He said: “To come away with a losing bonus point and deny Ponty a try bonus point was important.
“It’s half-time effectively and if we get a positive result this week then it puts us in good shape.”
He continued: “Quite a few boys put their hands up last week.
“Tommy Spinks played well and deserves an opportunity to play again this week and Matt Everard comes into the squad on loan from Wasps.
“It will be difficult for both teams to change their style in a week and we just need to do the things we did well down there even better this week.
“People are already talking about the London Welsh game next week but we need to perform well against Ponty.
“We take every game seriously and momentum is really important to any side and we need to make sure we build from here.”
A big crowd is expected at the Athletic Ground on Saturday and Buckland has called on the home fans to turn out in their numbers in the final home game of 2013.
“The boys have been fortunate to play in front of some big crowds this season,” he said.
“They are always motivated but there is that extra couple of percent from the atmosphere and it’s great when the boys are well supported.
“They were disappointed with the result last week and will be desperate to put it right on Saturday.
“Hopefully a lot of fans will be there to see them do it.”
Listen to James Buckland's full audio interview here.
– Remember to wear your best Christmas jumper on Saturday to stand a chance of winning a signed first team jersey.
Santa will be on hand to pick his favourite jumpers and hand out Christmas goodies.
For match tickets, click here or pay at the gate on the day.
Tickets start from just £12 for members and £14 for non-members.
Under-16s can get in for free.
London Scottish team to play Pontypridd in the British and Irish Cup on Saturday, December 14, Richmond Athletic Ground, 3pm kick-off.
15. Jim Thompson; 14. Peter Homan; 13. Oli Grove; 12. Andy Reay; 11. Miles Mantella; 10. Lee Millar; 9. Sam Stuart; 1. Eric Fry; 2. Adam Kwasnicki; 3. Tomas Francis; 4. Tyler Hotson; 5. David Lyons; 6. Chevvy Pennycook; 7. Tommy Spinks; 8. Mark Bright (c).
Replacements: 16. Tedd Stagg; 17. Mark Irish; 18. Paul Spivey; 19. Matt Everard; 20. Jordi Pasqualin; 21. Dan Newton; 22. James Love.
Pontypridd squad:
15.Matthew Nuthall; 14.Aled Summerhill; 13.Geraint Walsh; 12.Gary Williams; 11.Owen Jenkins; 10.Simon Humberstone (c); 9.Tom Williams; 1.Chris Phillips; 2.Liam Belcher; 3.Keiron Jenkins; 4.Craig Locke; 5.Jordan Sieniawski; 6.Luke Crocker; 7.Thomas Young; 8.Owen Sheppeard.
Replacements: 16.Lloyd Williams. 17.Dai Flanagan. 18.Gareth Wyatt. 19.Tom Hetherington. 20.Rhys Shellard. 21.James Howe. 22.Pat Palmer.
Referee: Ross Campbell
Assistant referee: Michael Patz and Darryl Chapman.
Fourth official: Doug Cowie
