Line-Up | |
---|---|
1 | Sam Cochrane |
2 | Peter Lloyd |
3 | Kelvyn Williams |
4 | Lance Randall |
5 | Ashley Sweet |
6 | Adam Stratton |
7 | Callum Davies |
8 | Dan Hill |
9 | Morgan Lloyd |
10 | Matthew Jarvis |
11 | Amosa Nove |
12 | Joel Mahoney |
13 | Pat Lewis |
14 | Marcus Jones |
15 | Josh Malson |
Substitutes | |
---|---|
17 | Ollie Drake |
19 | Scott Matthews |
20 | Lewis Johnson |
21 | Owain Leonard |
22 | Will Gregory |
23 | Michael Herbert |
Adam Stratton is set to make his 50th Pontypool appearance when Aberavon come to visit this weekend.
The flanker, who celebrated his birthday earlier this week, starts for the second time in a row following a number of appearances off the bench that has aided his comeback from injury.
The back row, who currently has 18 tries to his name, follows in the footsteps of outside-half Matthew Jarvis, who reached his half-century milestone in the victory over Swansea at St Helen’s last weekend.
“I played at Pontypool United before I played here and I never really thought I would get anywhere near 50 caps when I first came here but I was fortunate enough that they gave me a chance,” said Stratton.
“There were a couple of injuries when I first came here and I managed to get my name to the shirt.
“It’s a great achievement and I am extremely proud to play for the town.
“[There has been] a lot of highs and a lot of lows as well.
“I struggled with injuries during the promotion season so this season has been about getting to full fitness and getting back in the squad.
“It’s going well at the moment so hopefully I can progress now and stay in the team.
“There is a lot of tough competition so it’s difficult to push your way in when other boys are playing really well.
“It’s good for all the boys because it creates that competitive environment and brings everyone on, especially myself.”
Pooler come into the game on the back of a morale-boosting victory over the All Whites in difficult conditions while the Wizards travel east following a hard-fought victory over Bridgend Ravens.
Stratton believes that victory over Swansea could propel the club into a rich vein of form, familiar to earlier in the season.
“Llandovery, Bridgend and Newport are quality teams, the league is full of quality,” said Stratton.
“I think that run of form we had [earlier in the season] really helped with our confidence and that win on Saturday can help us build.
“Swansea are a top side and we stopped them playing their usual game.
“They have beaten teams we lost against. A win against Aberavon would do our confidence good.”