(01/02/2001)
Warwick Riga face a tough weekend of matches as teams either seek to recapture winning form or maintain progress up the League. The fact that none of the Riga sides has beaten their forthcoming opponents this season is a measure of the task ahead. The Men are first into action entertaining National League Division One Champions and current League leaders Malory at the St. Nicholas Park Leisure Centre, Warwick, on Saturday (6pm). The Women’s Division Three side are next in the fray on Sunday, also at the St. Nicholas Park Leisure Centre (11am), when they play host to League leaders Chelmsford and UEA Norwich. Last into combat is the Women’s Division Two team who travel north to play Tameside also on Sunday.
Having surrendered a record-breaking unbeaten run of six league victories to second-placed Portsmouth a week ago, the prospect of playing Malory is hardly one to relish. The London side appear a fixture at the top of the table, a fact helped in no small measure by their international-packed side. However a chink has appeared in their armour with defeat at the turn of the year by the aforementioned Portsmouth. The visitors have bounced back from that reverse and still have a steely grip on the top slot. With Warwick’s sudden surge up the table, the match should be closer than in previous years, but an upset? "At full strength and playing to their ability, there’s still no one around to touch Malory in this country," confirms captain Tom Young. "But Portsmouth have shown Malory can have off-days and be below strength, and then they can be taken. Saturday will be another big test of our progress and I’ll be pushing to make sure we do ourselves justice."
Sunday sees the Women’s Division Two side seeking to recapture its form of recent weeks and put behind it the debacle of Leeds. The three-nil drubbing at the hands of the new League leaders was disappointing. However the side can seek solace in the shape of missing players and below-par performances. In Tameside they face a side just below them in the League and who defeated them in a close five-setter in Warwick earlier in the season. Revenge and a regain of form are therefore the targets. "We were unlucky to lose the first match," confirms captain Rachel McCarthy. "Now we want to make amends but more importantly we need to get back to how we were playing against the likes of Loughborough. That’s how we should be playing week-in-week-out."
The Division Three side have progressed steadily up the table in recent weeks but that progress could come to a grinding halt at the weekend. Having lost to leaders Chelmsford three-nil at the start of the year and suffered a three-one reverse against UAE Norwich in their opening fixture of the season, the girls will have to work hard to maintain their momentum. Sunday will display the results of that test.