GREG JOHNSON has no intention of holding back when he comes face to face with the players who will become his teammates in 2011.

The 20-year-old winger will line up for the Giants in Sunday’s pre-season clash against Batley Bulldogs at Mount Pleasant (2.00).

But weeks later Johnson and Huddersfield teammate Elliot Hodgson will be wearing the colours of the Gallant Youths after signing dual registration contracts.

Johnson admits that makes this weekend’s clash all the more significant.

And he knows the prospect of coming up against some very familiar faces adds to what he’s sure will be a memorable occasion.

There’s every chance he will be opposite his former Giants teammate and close friend Alex Brown.

If not, he will being doing battle on the other flank with new Batley signing Wayne Reittie.

All three were teammates for Jamaica in last autumn’s Atlantic Cup competition in America when they beat Canada and lost to the USA.

But Johnson knows that close bond will count for nothing on Sunday afternoon.

“It’s going to be a bit strange at first when I see who’s opposite me,” said Johnson.

“But this is a massive game for me in terms of creating a good impression.

“I know that if I held back because I was playing against my mates, it wouldn’t go down too well with anyone. You also run more of a risk of picking up an injury if you do that, too.

“So for 80 minutes, we’ll be enemies, and then we’ll be good mates again.

“And that applies to all of the Batley lads.

“Although I haven’t trained with them yet, I do know most of them.

“I was out celebrating with Alex and the rest of the squad when Batley won the Northern Rail Cup last season, and I also went into the changing room after they’d beaten Dewsbury at the Mount on Sunday.

“The boys seemed pleased to see me – which was great – and I had a good chat with (Batley coach) Karl Harrison. I think my parting shot to him was about how much I was looking forward to smashing his boys this weekend!”

But even though Johnson was eager to have a joke with the Bulldogs chief, he knows the young Giants side that takes to the field on Sunday faces a huge challenge.

With Batley not fielding a second team, they will be putting out a strong and very experienced side – one that Johnson is treating with the utmost respect.

“They showed with the way they played against Dewsbury on Sunday (they won 30-6 at a canter) that they’re very strong,” he added. “The pack looked powerful and there’s a fair amount of skill and speed in the backs.

“So it’s pretty obvious this is going to be a big test for us this weekend.

“But we’re all looking forward to it.

“We’ve all worked really hard throughout pre-season training and we feel ready for a game now.

“This is the chance for us to see how much we’ve benefited from what’s been a very tough few months.”

Admission prices for the Batley game are £10 for adults, £5 concessions and free for Under 16s.