WHARFEDALE travel to Kendal in National Division Two tomorrow looking to ratchet up the effort level, improve their sense of collective responsibility and develop the consistency factor shown during last Saturday's defeat by Sedgley Park at The Avenue, (writes Tony Simpson).
While there were individual plusses in that 38-14 defeat - most notably in the performance of full-back Andy Hodgson, who was in dynamic form - and fleeting passages of play where the team functioned well, overall, the display fell below what the side is capable of.
The missed chances which blighted the display added to the frustration and without doubt a 'good day' would have seen at least a couple of chances taken.
In the event, only a single piece of solo brilliance for Andy Hodgson enabled the Dalesmen to cross the Park line and an additional objective tomorrow will be to convert their chances.
Wharfedale hope to travel to Mint Bridge with an unchanged squad, but they were checking on three injury problems during the week.
Lock David Lister needed eight stitches in a cut lip on Saturday after a blow in the mouth - from one of his own men - resulted in his teeth cutting into his lip. He is still in the process of extending the longest run of successive games at national league level and the Wharfedale management expect that he will be on the pitch tomorrow afternoon, by hook or by crook.
In the backs, centre David Whitfield has a hamstring problem and Simon Walker stands by, while skipper Hodgson picked up a dead-leg last weekend, but should be fit.
In terms of selection, Neil Dickinson gets a start this week under the rotation system, with Craig Ingram taking a replacement berth, while Paul Evans also starts on the bench, with Hedley Verity at blind-side flanker, Sam Allen at No 8 and Simon Hargreaves at open side.
With hooking resources across the club fairly stretched this week, James Ogden is released for Foresters' duty and prop Chris Greenwood covers for front-row problems. Simon Slater completes the bench line-up.
South African centre Chris Malherbe needs another week to get his damaged shoulder fully fit, but other news from the land of the springbok is that the flanker who was in discussion with the Dalesmen has also had talks with his father about the future and has been persuaded that university is the best place for him at the moment.
Coach Peter Hartley was disappointed at the performance last weekend, but drew consolation from the fact that he knows that the team has more to offer.
"To get a much better performance from the lads will not require them to lift their game beyond what they are capable of," says Hartley. "We could have had 20 points by half-time had we taken our chances.
"Having said that, Park supported their runners much better than we did and when the opposition have an advantage in size, there is less time to get your players into position to continue an attack or win possession.
"That requires a more consistent effort from everyone for 80 minutes#. There should be no-one hiding - everyone has to be committed all the time.
"So far as Kendal are concerned, we have to be confident and positive and believe that we can get two points from the fixture. We know all about them and expect that they will try to be more expansive than they used to be."
Wharfedale: A Hodgson; G Smithson, D Whitfield, J Davies, A Lovatt; G Smith, A Baggett; P Peel, G Hindle, N Dickinson, D Lister, A Capstick, H Verity, S Hargreaves, A Allen.
Replacements: C Ingram, C Greenwood, S Slater.
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