‘Welsh are a pedigree name in English rugby’
Maids kick off new season against a team on their way back up
Maidenhead start their new Regional 1 South Central season at home to London Welsh on Saturday, a side who - like Maidenhead - have real ambitions of pushing for promotion and possibly more in the coming seasons.
Maids once again come into this newly formed like as something of an unknown quantity, however, head coach David Mobbs-Smith feels confident they have the quality and strength in depth to be competitive.
Having adapted so well to life in the London & South East Premier Division last season, Maids have been switched out in another major RFU restructure and will now take on a mixture of teams that have traditionally played in the South West and South East Divisions.
Bournemouth, Bracknell, and Oxford Harlequins are back on Maids' radar again, while the likes of Wimbledon, Brighton and Sutton & Epsom have joined them in the move from the London leagues.
Welsh are also a bit of an enigma. They have one of the richest histories in rugby union and have played in the Premiership, however, they went into voluntary liquidation in 2016 after failing to pay their debts and were subsequently relegated down the divisions.
They're now on their way back up and Mobbs-Smith is expecting them to be a tough proposition for Maids in what is one of the stand-out fixtures on the opening day of the campaign.
“We couldn't have asked for a better start,” said the head coach. “They're one of the pedigree names of English rugby. What a moment to have them
come and play us, one of the great clubs of England, it really is brilliant.
“It will be really interesting this season, because it's not as if 10 of the teams were in the league last year, and it will be interesting to see how teams adjust to being in a new league.
“Some teams will have put in a big recruitment effort, so they might look like a very different side to last year anyway. There's quite a mix of teams so it will be very interesting to see how it all pans out. It's impossible to judge how Wimbledon will match up to Oxford Harlequins, how do you do that? I wouldn't put £5 down on who would get promoted and relegated, that's for sure.”
He added: “London Welsh are on their way back. They got relegated down all the divisions due to financial issues, but they were playing in the Premiership 10 years ago.
“I would expect London Welsh to bring at least a hundred supporters with them so it will make for a good atmosphere. They're one of the best supported teams in the league by a long way.”
Maids have also picked up some impressive results in pre-season, splitting the squad to beat Beaconsfield 337 and Windsor 45-5 on the same afternoon on August 20. Mobbs-Smith is hopeful they can carry that form into the new season and start a little faster than they did last season, when they lost six of their opening seven games.
“We're starting to get quite a bit of depth now and that leads to competition for selection,” he added. “Most people are fit to go so we have lots of choices to make over the first few games.
“We're possibly in a better position than we were last season, injury wise, but I want these selection issues because it will mean we have fit players.
“Some of them have played sevens through the summer so they're in good shape.
“We're hoping to make a good start, because it just changes how people view you when they come to play you.
“If you're performing quite well there's a snowballing effect in sport. If you're winning and things are going your way, you sneak some games, and your opponents look at you slightly differently. Once you get on a better run it makes it much harder for teams to come and beat you.”