The Leicester Lion Cubs make the short journey along the A50 to Stoke on Sunday in what is a top of the table clash against the Potters.
The Staffordshire club have accumulated eleven points from five matches and a win against Leicester will guarantee them a place in the final. The Lion Cubs are in second place after home wins against Kent and Stoke and have three matches in hand over their nearest rivals.
"Sunday's fixture promises to be our toughest test so far. Stoke are on a real high and deserve to be top of the National Trophy table and have won three out of four matches in the league so far. With this momentum together with their home track advantage we will need to be on our very top form to stand a chance of taking anything from the match” explained the Lion Cubs team manager David Howard.
Stoke are surprising the pundits this year and have an experienced trio of heat leaders in Ben Wilson, Jon Armstrong and Ben Hopwood. Apart from a good run in the National Trophy and a promising start in the league this year the Potters tasted early success at the weekend when Wilson and Armstrong won the first major competition of the season after they beat the host club Mildenhall, Kent and Buxton in the National Pairs Final at the Suffolk track.
“This match has all the makings of a great encounter between the experience of the Stoke team and the exuberance of our top end so I am sure it will be an interesting contest between two very good sides. I am really pleased to be able to name our strongest top five, with Oliver Greenwood, Tom Perry and James Sarjeant all due to return following injury and any travelling Lion Cubs supporters could be in for some great entertainment as well as spurring on the team" enthused Howard.
Teams
Stoke: 1. Ben Wilson, 2. Chris Widman, 3. Ben Hopwood, 4. Lee Payne, 5. Jon Armstrong, 6. Rob Shuttleworth and 7. Adam Kirby
Leicester: 1. Oliver Greenwood, 2.Dan Greenwood, 3. Max Clegg, 4. Tom Perry, 5. James Sarjeant, 6. Sam Chapman and 7. Tom Woolley
