After a couple hard fought matches where our 1XV came away with a win against Newport Salop and a loss against Penrith, Greg highlighted how hard this league can be...

"Every league game at the moment seems to be a very tough battle, each game is a tight affair where you really have to battle hard to get the win. Since we started this new project the lads have never shied away from the hard work and the effort is always there, the fashion in which we won against Newport is a testament of this effort. This season we have really emphasized the importance of putting in the extra work off of the pitch and the lads have bought into this, whether that's extra gym sessions, recovering right or fuelling their bodies properly."

There has been a noticeable change in the style in which Blackburn 1XV have been playing this year, Greg told us more about this...

"We made some changes before the start of the season with a lot more emphasis on running with the ball at pace and kicking less. Not only do I think this makes for more entertaining rugby matches but I believe it plays to our strengths. There is more pressure on the players regarding skillset but coupled with the effort levels it can be a very effective winning formula. We have been training on the new artificial pitch at Darwen FC and this has allowed us to keep training at a high intensity whatever the weather, in previous years some momentum has been lost due to bad weather cancelling matches and training. The 1XV pitch is also in excellent condition considering the time of year and this is down to the hard work of our brilliant groundsman."

Finally we asked Greg about what it will take for a team to win this league...

"With the high intensity and physicality we are seeing in games, I believe the team with the best squad depth and ability to help players prevent or recover from injuries quickest will be crowned champions. Availability is ability, especially at our level where life often gets in the way for players and they miss matches for one reason or another. I have put the challenge out there to the lads and asked what do you want to achieve this year and how committed are we all to achieving it? It's a really tight league and we will see over the next couple of matches who is going to be in the run in come the end of the season."

Best of luck to Greg and all the 1XV lads tomorrow, you can read the match preview for their game against Wirral 1XV here.