Kingstone Press Championship preview: Dewsbury Rams v Hunslet Hawks

Dewsbury Rams came close to inflicting a first defeat on league leaders Leigh Centurions last week.

Coach Glenn Morrison said: “We played some good rugby and it was a good match; it felt like a final. We just came up with some bad plays and wrong options at crucial times which cost us. We thought we’d done enough to win the game so it was a little bit disappointing to come that close.

“Some teams would be happy with that but we walked away disappointed. But that’s why they’re undefeated, they know how to win those tough games.

“There’s been an improvement in the last two weeks. To knock off London down there and come so close against two full-time teams – we’re starting to click.”

Looking ahead to the game against Hunslet Hawks he said: “We need to keep the momentum we’ve been building and we don’t want any complacency dropping back into the side. We’ll come into the game wanting to keep kicking on.”

Full-back Kieran Hyde and hooker Tom Hemingway both have leg injuries and are unlikely to feature this week.

Hunslet Hawks coach Barry Eaton said: “We weren’t far off against the Broncos and there were some real momentum swings in the game that went the Broncos way which led to them getting some points. But ultimately we didn’t quite defend well enough when we needed to make solid one-on-one tackles and that cost us.

“Dewsbury have some real momentum at the moment and by all accounts went very, very close to beating Leigh at the weekend. It’s a tough challenge, especially at their place, they’re pretty formidable at home and play their tight pitch really, really well.

“It’s no surprise that they’re probably the biggest side in the competition and Glenn Morrison has put that side together based on their pitch being the smallest in the competition. It’s going to be a tough physical battle for us this weekend.”