With no 1st XV games last weekend, our squad had the opportunity to rest the inevitable niggles and knocks that tend to accumulate over the course of the season. At the moment we have a number of regulars including Matt Wadling, Ben Murphy and Rhys Hartley managing injuries, so they will all be rested this weekend.

With nine games of the season gone (approximately a third of the way through the season) our 1st XV sit in second position. Seven points behind the leaders Rochford and three points ahead of the third place side North Walsham. We would have certainly preferred to be in pole position, but from my perspective, we have played and won three very tricky away games; Walsham, Eton Manor and Old Habs; these points in the bank could be absolutely crucial.

It is worth a look at the unfolding picture in London North 1 because the second promotion place into the London and South East Premier division will come from a North v South second place playoff. At the moment Medway and Brighton are jockeying for position but remain neck and neck on 41 points. Medway have maintained a 100% record but Brighton have one defeat and hold onto the top spot by virtue of the number of try bonus points they have accrued. Although it's early doors, it looks like Medway, Brighton, Camberley and Sevenoaks are the sides likely to challenge in the London 1 South promotion chase. Having watched a couple of Medway's games on youtube I suspect that they are likely to eventually pull away from Brighton - especially as they have been in the promotion race before and perhaps have greater strength in depth, and more experience, than their rivals.

Looking ahead, in the next week or so, we hope to welcome a few of our regulars back into action. Firstly, second row Alex Burman is chomping at the bit to get back on the pitch. Alex has suffered a couple of injuries, but he is reaching the point where he will be back in contention for a starting spot. Alex made an excellent start to the season after returning from Roehampton University and a short spell at Bury St Edmonds RFC. After coming off just before the end of the Rochford game, Oly Pickett is well on the way to full fitness. Although we have an embarrassment of riches in terms of loose forwards, Oly brings incredible pace and power to our offensive options. Oly has an incredible try-scoring record; when he's given an inch of space and an opportunity to hit the ball at pace he's almost unstoppable. Despite missing some key players our squad has coped incredibly well with the injuries we have sustained. For example, Ollie White has come back into the 1st XV shake-up after almost a season on the sidelines. Ollie was a major part of our promotion season in 2014-15 but work commitments have since made it difficult for him to commit, but this season he has come back and made a real impact again. At Old Haberdashers, Ollie White put in a really gutsy performance. It was an intense encounter but Ollie was in the right place at the right time to initiate a mismatch inside our opponents 22 and open up just enough space to slip through the home sides defence to score the crucial winning try.

This weekend, due to availability issues, there are going to be a number of changes to our starting line up. Firstly, we will have two changes at prop forward with Jerone Awesu and Simon Gray coming into the side in place of James and Alex Mitchell. With both Mitchells unavailable, changes had to be made to what has been a successful formula so far this season. There is one significant change in the back line with Brett Cutbush reverting to scrum-half. Brett is such a flexible and talented all-round rugby player, so in recent weeks he has played full-back, fly-half and centre, but this week he will be back in his favourite position.

The Ravens will be travelling to Westcliff this weekend. The Westcliff 1st XV are riding high in the South East Premier Division; they are now a very different side from the team that just avoided relegation back into London 1 due to the financial collapse at East Grinstead RFC in 2016. That brush with relegation heralded a mindset change at Westcliff - they decided to radically reform their recruitment policy and as a result, they are now vying for the top spot in the Premier Division and look like they have a fighting chance of promotion into National League 2. The Westcliff 2nd XV will be a strong outfit and the Ravens will have a stern test this weekend.