We’ll battle to the end says Giants' Jackson - video

Jun 5 2009 by Chris Roberts, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

EXPERIENCED campaigner Paul Jackson believes the Giants now have the mental strength to sustain their League and Cup challenge right to the end.

Huddersfield entertain Hull KR at the Galpharm tonight (8.00) in a battle between the two teams described as the ‘surprise packages’ of Super League XIV.

While the Giants are fourth in Super League, Rovers are sitting second in the top-flight table.

But with the character coach Nathan Brown’s side showed to overcome Castleford in last week’s thrilling Challenge Cup quarter-final, Jackson is confident of seeing his side notch up a 10th League triumph of the campaign.

“Hull KR are going great and tonight will be another very tough challenge for us,” said the 30-year-old prop.

“But we’ll be going into the game with a fair bit of confidence behind us, especially given the nature of our Cup success over Cas.

“They’ve been playing really well and are now a very difficult side to beat, so for us to make as many errors as we did and still win is very encouraging indeed.

“As soon as that game was over I said to Browny that a Giants team of old would have lost that match.

“Not too long ago, there’s no way we would have had the mental strength and resolve to come back from a 14-6 deficit so late in the game and won. We wouldn’t have been able to cope with that amount of adversity.

“But now it’s a totally different matter.

“We have that character to dig deep and pull things round when it looks as if the game might be slipping away, and that’s something that adds to your confidence when you’re about to face what you know is going to be a tough, close game, which is what we expect tonight.