Yere banned for Widnes clash

Sheffield Eagles coach Mark Aston must cope without Papua New Guinea centre Menzie Yere after the powerful three-quarter was banned for two matches by the RFL.

Yere, who has scored 20 tries this season, was guilty of making dangerous contact with Featherstone’s Jon Hepworth.

However, his absence is unlikely to dent Sheffield’s confidence. Their 52-18 win over York last week secured a fourth-place finish in the Co-operative Championship and guaranteed a home tie in this week’s Elimination Play-Off.

Aston said: “Last year we finished sixth and we wanted to better that. We’ve done that and I’m really proud of the players.”

He added: “We’re pleased we’ve got the home draw against Widnes. We got a big score against York, we showed we can play and we’ve got a lot of confidence going into Friday’s game.”

Widnes centre Steve Tyrer looks set to be assessed after suffering a knock against Featherstone, but Kevin Penny is fit despite leaving the field early against Rovers.

Widnes coach Denis Betts will also hope to have Simon Finnigan available after he missed last week’s clash through illness.

Betts must somehow raise his squad for the challenge of the play-offs, after admitting: “It’s been a very difficult few weeks.

“Players have formed good friendships, everyone gets on, we have a good team spirit and they are hurting as some of their team-mates are leaving the club.”