By Alfie Martin
Plymouth Albion youngster Joe Snow is eager to make an impact as they welcome Darlington Mowden Park for their National League One fixture tomorrow (3pm).
Mowden Park, who sit just one place above Albion, will make the 400-mile trip to Brickfields in round 25 of the competition.
Snow, who will bag his 50th cap for the club this weekend, praised the club culture at Albion for helping him on his way.
He said: “It feels fantastic to be reaching 50 games for Albion. The opportunities that this club presents is what drives us to these milestones.
“The players really encourage the younger boys and help us to progress at our own pace.”
The 21-year old is eager to challenge himself against a strong Mowden Park side, who have been enjoying fine form in recent times with wins over Sale and Canterbury last month.
“We’ve seen in the past that we can beat strong sides that sit above us in the table,” said the scrum-half. “We have had a big shift in mentality and look to focus on ourselves regardless of our opposition.
“We always look to get the best from ourselves whether that’s physical or mental toughness. We want to push ourselves against top teams so we can improve our performances.”
And if there is one man who knows all about mental toughness, it’s Albion head coach and former Exeter Chief James Scaysbrook.
The 38-year old insists that Albion’s primary focus is their performance, irrespective of their opponents.
He said: “Looking at this game, we will look at ourselves and ask: Which areas can we look to improve in and can we continue the aspects that are going well for us?”
“We look at performance measures to see how we are progressing as a team as opposed to the position of the team we are playing against,” said Scaysbrook.
The Albion chief has praised the eagerness of his younger players to show their talent when opportunity knocks.
Snow isn’t the only young prospect being given the chance to shine; Shea Cornish, Sam Morley, Lewis Pearson and James Kenny all line up in the starting ranks.
“Opportunity is a big aspect of rugby,” said Scaysbrook. “Young players are given the opportunity to showcase their talent and prove themselves. We have quite a young squad that are constantly gaining experience and getting games under their belt.”
Photographer: Zoe Barton
You can watch the full pre-match interviews here:
