Taylor returns to starting line-up for Barnes test

HENLEY Hawks travel to South West London tomorrow (Saturday) for their latest National 2 East fixture against Barnes, kick-off at 2pm.

Following last weekend’s 18-18 draw with league leaders Dorking, Henley will go into the game knowing that at their best, they are a match for any side in the division.

With Barnes losing away to Bury St Edmunds, the gap between the top five teams narrowed and has made the promotion contest much more interesting.

For the Hawks, discipline will be a key factor as, yet again, they put themselves under significant pressure due to the penalty count against them. This will certainly be something that director of rugby Luke Allen addresses at training this week.

Last season, the honours were shared between the two sides with Henley coming out on top 29-12 at Dry Leas in September, before the Londoners gained their revenge in January this year with a 31-21 triumph.

However, like Dorking last week, Barnes have performed very well this season with eight wins and two losses to their name and currently sit in second place. Their home form in particular has been excellent, so the Hawks will know full well the task that lies ahead of them.

In terms of team selection, Allen makes several changes to the side that drew with Dorking. In the pack sees Dave Manning return to the starting line-up at loosehead prop and Zack Taylor make his first start of the season at number eight. In the backs, Adam Hakimian returns to inside centre in an otherwise unchanged backline.

On the bench sees new signing, Alex Hayton come in for his first Hawks appearance. The big second row forward joins from the RAF and will bring significant height and power to the Hawks pack.

Elsewhere on Saturday, Henley 2nds take on Oxford University Greyhounds in a friendly at Dry Leas, kick-off 2.30pm. The Vikings travel to Reading 2nds for the postponed fixture from November 4, kick-off is also 2.30pm.

On Sunday, Henley Hawks Women, fresh from their triumph over Bath Ladies, travel to in-form Richmond for their latest Championship South fixture. Kick-off is 2.30pm.

The provisional Henley Hawks side to face Barnes is as follows: 1 Dave Manning, 2 Tom Emery, 3 Rory Mason, 4 Marcus Lowe, 5 Sam Lunnon, 6 Will Benning, 7 Tom Vooght, 8 Zack Taylor, 9 Leo Webb, 10 Max Titchener, 11 Lailand Gordon, 12 Adam Hakimian, 13 Ryan Crowley, 14 George Wood, 15 Toby Evans. Replacements: 16 Istok Totic, 17 Kadeem Collins, 18 Alex Hayton, 19 Jordan Oatley, 20 Will Crow.