THE cream of Hereford stand between Huddersfield and a place in National III North next season.

And the signs are that the Leominster outfit will be sending a hefty pack – skippered by 6ft 4in 16-stone lock Chris Jaques – in their bid for promotion glory.

The big second row didn’t start playing the game until he was 18, and has now been at the club for eight years. However, he will be missing his brother, prop Steve, who was injured last week in their final Midlands I League game.

But they still have plenty more ‘big units’ such as front rowers Rob Yeomans (20st), Mick Jones (15.5st), hooker Nick Byron (16st), second row Darren Brick (16st) and No 8 Paul Hulland, who also tips the scales at 19 stone and has county representative honours with Shropshire.

Like Huddersfield, Lucs have a young stand-off in Alex James, who is 19 and in his fifth season with the club, while his brother Chris, who has represented Hereford and Worcester, plays at scrum half.

Luctonians just scraped into the play-offs by virtue of their second draw of the season, gaining the single point they needed at Kenilworth last Saturday in a 25-25 tie.

And the Leominster side have also lost almost a third of their 22-game schedule, going down seven times.

However, they do possess the best defensive record in Midlands I, having shipped just 254 points – by far the stingiest in the division, while on the opposite side they have compiled 557 points, the second best tally behind champions Loughborough Students, leaving them with a points difference of plus 303.

“We were a bit disappointed the way Kenilworth approached the game last week, but in the end we got the point we needed,” said a club spokesman.

“Obviously the lads were thrilled to get into the play-offs, and are now all really looking forward to visiting Huddersfield tomorrow.”

One absolutely amazing coincidence thrown up by tomorrow’s match-up, is that Huddersfield’s retiring (but certainly not shy) flanker Hamish Pratt, shares an early seat of learning with Luctonians’ centre Blake Korteweg.

The 24-year-old Hereford-based player hails from Otago in New Zealand, the same town as Pratt was raised, and they attended the same primary school, albeit at different times. Hopefully, tomorrow, Pratt will turn ‘teacher’ to his younger fellow student.