City's victory at Team Northumbria last week raised a few eyebrows - specially after the students put 40 points on Carlisle the previous week.

TN are currently being coached by Steve Bates [until he gets a coaching offer from a Premiership club] and had been training every day for three weeks, which must have made City's victory all the sweeter.

City finished last season strongly, after recruiting a few Aussies, and any victory at Hollow Drift this season will be hard earned.

We certainly can't afford to gift them a three try start like we did last week. If we had done that last season we would have gone on to lose by a landslide. Instead, every credit muist be given to Jonny Boatman's lads for sticking at it and coming away with an excellent five points.

Peter Hodgson and Adam Coates are the absentees from that victory. Coatesy began the game with a troublesome shoulder, giving way to Stephen Stockdale who has been champing at the bit for a first team start after his summer playing rugby league.

Peter Hodgson limped off with a hamstring injury to be replaced by flanker Alex Barker who gamely took up a wing position. Darren Thomas returns to the squad in Hodgy's place.

Barker returns to the Stags to get some game time, with Rafferty and Hogan stepping up to the first team, as the coaches continue to nurture the young talent which is producing excellent results both for the Stags and the Bucks.

Adam Howard makes his return after breaking his hand in the bucks side which takes on Boro.

West squad: Scott Jordan, Adam Larkin, Darren Thomas, Gavin Robinson, Paul Moss, Colin Cheslin, Gareth Foreman, Andrew Foreman, Anth Carr, Liam Bailey, Stephen Stockdale, Tom Dixon, Andrew Davies, Dan Boatman, Jon Boatman [c], Paul Rudd Joe Rafferty, Michael Hogan