Martin Johnson will be in attendance but llkley coach Rhys Morgan has warned his players not to be distracted by the club’s celebrations to mark the opening of their new £1.7million clubhouse tomorrow.
Johnson will be making the private visit just three days after announcing his resignation following Eng-land’s dismal showing in the 2011 World Cup where they were knocked out in the quarter-finals.
He will arrive at Stacks Field by helicopter for the opening ceremony at 11.45am.
England’s 2003 World Cup-winning captain is due to spend some time with the club’s under-eight and under-12 players, who are playing matches at noon and will also watch Ilkley’s first team take on Scarborough in Yorkshire One.
Yet Morgan – whose side’s 41-6 win at Huddersfield YMCA last weekend was their biggest of the season – said: “We must guard against letting Scarborough spoil our party. It is a big day for the club, I cannot deny that, but this is just another game for us and one we need to win.”
Back row forward Ian Mckenzie, one of the most consistent players this season, is missing tomorrow but Morgan has Neil Spence, Nathan Bland, Liam Copsey and Brandan Han-nam in the frame.
After four agonisingly close defeats, Wharfedale face fellow strugglers Barking bolstered by the return to action of three key forwards from the sick list.
Prop Chris Steel, who made a convincing return last week in the Foresters’ 32-7 victory at Blaydon, is joined in the starting line-up by England under-18 cap Joe Quinn. And significantly, club captain Rob Baldwin will be on the bench after three weeks’ absence with damaged ribs.
The backs are unchanged, which means that Tom Barrett is on the bench.
The match will be refereed by the code-switching Karl Kirkpatrick, who took charge of the 2004 RL Challenge Cup Final at the Millennium Stadium between St Helens and Wigan and the 2006 Grand Final between and St Helens and Hull at Old Trafford. He is now on the RFU refereeing fast-track.
Meanwhile, Otley face a trip Nuneaton as they bid to avoid a third straight defeat in National Two North.
Keighley are in buoyant mood and are seeking to register a fifth straight win in Yorkshire One when they host North Ribblesdale in a local derby.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here