Cornwall v Newcastle Thunder preview

After another break in the league season due to The Challenge Cup this weekend sees Newcastle Thunder make the long trip to Penryn to take on Cornwall. Unfortunately I won't be able to be there.

I'll start by saying there are a lot of parallels between Newcastle and Cornwall, both teams outside of the heartlands who want to grow rugby league. Personally from a Thunder perspective I have a lot of time and respect for everyone involved at Cornwall as it isn't easy to do. There are many challenges involved in terms of logistics, player availability and finance. These are two clubs who should be applauded for keeping rugby league alive in their areas.

Cornwall started their league campaign with a tough trip to Rochdale and came out with a 68-0 loss. Cornwall will look to ex Thunder man David Weetman as their talisman. Since their inception Cornwall have a core of players with League One experience and along with Weetman they will look to the likes of Harry Boots, Jake Lloyd and Adam Rusling on Sunday afternoon.

Thunder will be looking to build on an encouraging display against Swinton where I felt the scoreline didn't do the players justice. Yes there were some mistakes but I couldn't fault any of the players for effort, there was some real shoots of encouragement. Key Thunder players Evan Lawther and Tyler Walton continue to miss out, but there's the return of the Mac this week. Mac Walsh who was at Thunder a couple of seasons ago joins on loan from York this week. He looked promising in The Championship and will add some youthful experience to the backline. Also on dual registration this week are promising Bradford Bulls prospects Jamie Gill and Jacob Bateman who will be keen to show what they're capable of.

For both teams this is a huge game and Chris Thorman has alluded to targeting certain games this season and I'd be very surprised if this isn't one of them. Likewise after two victories of Newcastle Thunder last season 30-6 in Cornwall and 44-34 up in Gateshead, Mike Abbott will be targeting these Thunder games as huge opportunities for his side. They'll look to start fast and catch Thunder cold after their travel.

I fully expect this one to be fiery with two teams desperate for a win being fully committed to their cause. I know I'm biased but knowing where the club has come from and how much work is being put in, I'd be delighted for everyone involved if Thunder could bring a win back to Tyneside.