Huddersfield Giants are hoping for a bumper turn-out at Laund Hill for Sunday’s Academy double-header.

The Under 16s get the action under way at noon with their opener against Cumbria before the Under 19s host Midlands Academy at 2pm.

Under 19s head coach Chris Thorman gave debuts to a number of youngsters during their 40-4 opening-day win over London Broncos last weekend and is planning on giving call-ups to more new faces.

“Because this isn’t a competitive fixture we could possibly give a few other people an opportunity to play,” said Thorman.

“We’ve communicated with the Midlands about may be having 18 or 19 in the squad rather than 17, which for me would be the logical thing to do. From our point of view, we want to give as many people an opportunity to play this year as possible.

“We’re excited to play the Midlands, they’re an unknown quantity. We just want to keep improving week on week. We preach consistency and we preach Giants standards. We made a good start but there’s lots of improvement to go.”

The Under 16s game against Cumbria is their first of the season, with their planned opener at Wigan falling victim to the recent icy blast.

And Player Performance Manager Steve Hardisty knows staff and players alike are excited about the season finally getting under way.

“We’re all looking forward to it, more importantly so are the kids. They started their training regime in the last week of August so it’s been a fair old while coming,” he said.

“It’s a real experience for the kids to pull on the Claret and Gold for the first time, because that brings a challenge in itself when they look down at their chest and see that badge.

“It’s something the kids will have to get over, so there are a range of challenges not only within the game itself.”

Admission prices for Sunday are: Adult Season Ticket Holders £3, Adults £5, Concessions £4, Concessions Season Ticket Holders £2 and free of charge for Under 16s.