BIRKENHEAD PARK should at last get back down to business this Saturday six weeks after their last outing in National 3 North.
Park are scheduled to visit Darlington Mowden Park and will be looking for their first double of the season.
They will be praying that there is no return to the wintry conditions that have prevailed in recent weeks completely disrupting the scheduled rugby programme.
The Park squad have been working extremely hard under the guidance of Shaun Gallagher who has been putting the players through a gruelling schedule both in the gym and outdoors at Arrowe Park.
The break has given a number of players the opportunity to work their way back to fitness and player-coach Dave Blyth is amongst those almost ready for a return to action.
Dave Ibbotson has put his injury worries behind him and Steven Dodd is also hoping to resume shortly.
Park prevailed against Darlington MP 25-21 in the home match back in October and they will be looking to start 2010 with a win.
There will also be a welcome return to action at the Upper Park on Saturday. The Park Wanderers are scheduled to take on Preston Grasshoppers in the Bateman BMW Premiership although the re-arranged Raging Bull Cup match against Sedgley Park may take preference, in either case a stern test awaits the young Park side.
THE club has been saddened this week by news of the death of former player and coach Stan Liptrot.
Stan played for the Park 1st XV during the 1970s as a centre and went on to a successful coaching career not only at Park but later at Barnstaple and Llandovery.
WEST PARK’S chairman of Rugby Ian Worsley no doubt realises that this coming Saturday at Rochdale will be like the start of a new season for his side.
The squad have been hit severely by the bad weather with training confined to indoors using a local gym close to the Saints’ ground.
If there is any consolation at least it is in the knowledge that the break has enabled a number of players including the likes of stand-off Neil Ryan and Rob Hitchmough to recover from knocks. However, West Park will be without centre Steve Briers who has a leg infection.
Rochdale are 12 points above West Park near the bottom of the National 3 North table having created a gap between themselves and the drop zone.With Park’s last encounter back in early December, the trip to East Lancashire can only be regarded as a major challenge.
