News
Team News v Saracens
Mike Rayer has named his squad as Bedford Blues travel to the StoneX Stadium on Sunday in hunt of upsetting the odds against a Saracens side expected to be at full strength for the first time this season (KO 1pm).
Sunday’s match is available to live stream for £10 by clicking here (on air at 12:30pm).
A historic fixture dating back more than 120 years, Bedford Blues will reach the halfway point of the Championship season after this weekend hoping to cause shockwaves by beating Saracens for the first time since 1993.
On his 475th match in charge of Bedford Blues, Rayer makes six changes to the side and can welcome back Henry Paul and Elijah Niko from injury.
Paul – who plays for the first time in this season’s Championship – is one of two prop changes as Emmanuel Iyogun starts his first Bedford game after impressing from the replacements in recent weeks. The final change within the forward pack sees Will Carrick Smith return to form a familiar second row partnership alongside Lewis Bean.
In the backs, there are a further three changes as Connor Tupai starts, following his suspension, in the number nine jersey. Elijah Niko returns to outside centre and Pat Tapley gets the nod on the wing.
Corrie Barrett, Jordan Onojaife and Oskar Hirskyj-Douglas still miss out through injury.
Starting XV:
15. Rich Lane, 14. Pat Tapley, 13. Elijah Niko, 12. Reuben Bird-Tulloch, 11. Matt Worley, 10. Tommy Mathews, 9. Connor Tupai; 1. Emmanuel Iyogun, 2. James Fish, 3. Henry Paul, 4. Will Carrick Smith, 5. Lewis Bean, 6. Ollie Newman, 7. Joe Atkinson, 8. Tui Uru
Replacements:
16. Jacob Fields, 17. Sean McCarthy, 18. Ed Prowse, 19. Oli Curry, 20. Oli Robinson, 21. James Lennon, 22. Will Maisey, 23. Tom Litchfield
