Match Preview: Bishop’s Stortford vs Plymouth Albion
Saturday 20 September – Silver Leys, 3:00pm KO
Plymouth Albion are in action again this weekend, when they head north of the capital for what could be considered their first real test of the season. Albion will take on Bishop’s Stortford, a National One stalwart with real pedigree in the division.
Last season Stortford finished ninth in the league, a few spots behind Albion, and like Albion, they have strengthened considerably over the summer, bringing in seven new signings. Among them is Jai Johal, twin brother of Aman Johal, with whom he played at Nottingham Trent. Other arrivals include Tom Hitchcock, who last season played Championship rugby at Coventry, Harry Clarke, who featured in the England junior programmes and also played in Australia for Palmyra RFC, and James Roberts, another player with recent experience in Australia with the Alleygators.
Form Guide
Albion head into the fixture in great spirits after making a strong start to the campaign. Their season opener was an impressive 45–12 away win at Leeds, followed by a commanding 62–5 victory over Clifton at Brickfields last weekend. Both opponents were newly promoted, not to take away from Albion’s performances, but this weekend’s clash offers an altogether sterner test.
Bishop’s Stortford, meanwhile, have experienced a mixed start. They opened with a win over Birmingham Moseley before suffering a narrow defeat against Blackheath.
The two clubs met twice last season, with Albion taking the spoils on both occasions: a 39–20 win at Silver Leys and a hard-fought 24–21 victory at Brickfields. Across those games, Albion managed nine tries — and so far this season, they have already racked up seventeen tries in just two fixtures.
Team News
Head Coach Ryan Lamb has named an unchanged side from last week, showing faith in a group that has delivered two strong early-season performances.
Starting XV
- Jenson Boughton
- Harry Wilkinson
- Dan Pullinger
- Joel Broadhurst
- Freddie Stevenson
- Jake Clemson
- Angus Hodges
- Ben Moa
- Jack Oulton
- Harry Legg
- Bobby Wigginton
- Archie Hill
- Oscar Stewart
- Shea Cornish
- Frankie Dart
Replacements
16. Gabe Mead
17. Liam Bishop
18. Jago Sheppard
19. Morgan Stone
20. Jack Statton
From the Coach
Coach Ryan Lamb said ahead of the game:
“It’s the first time I can remember us selecting the same side as the week before, so it’s nice to have a bit of consistency in that and I think it shows that the boys have put a couple of really good performances in and they deserve having the shirt at the moment.”
On this weekend’s opposition, Lamb added:
“They’ve had a good start and were unlucky to lose against Blackheath on the last play — Blackheath are a very good side. We know it’s going to be difficult up there. The last couple of seasons we’ve had a bit of success, but they’ve got a really strong four back, they’re well drilled, so defensively we’ll need to be on it. We’ve been pleased with our defensive set so far this season, so we’ve got to back it up away from home against a good side in Bishop’s.”
Pablo Cheeks
