Colchester will aim to build on their mighty impressive victory against Westcombe Park as they make a return to the capital this weekend to play London Welsh (kick-off 3pm).

Saturday’s 40-12 win – during which Colchester outscored their opponents from Kent by six tries to two – will have given the new-look team a huge boost as they embark on a second spell in National 2 East.

Now an even bigger challenge awaits as they visit Old Deer Park, which is amongst the most iconic venues in English club rugby union.

One of the greatest sides of the 1960s and 70s, London Welsh supplied no fewer than seven players to the 1971 British and Irish Lions tour to New Zealand, a record which remains unbroken today.

Sadly, the professional side went out of business in 2017 after two brief and underwhelming spells in the English Premiership. But the amateur side survived as a separate entity and continues to play at the club’s spiritual home in Richmond.

Five promotions in seven seasons took The Exiles, as they are known, to National 2 East in 2025/26, and they finished their first season in ninth place in the league.

This will be London Welsh’s first home match of the season, as they started this campaign with two matches on the road, winning 33-22 at Jersey then followed that up with a narrow 30-29 defeat at Henley.

It took a last-minute drop goal to deprive The Exiles of what would have been two away wins, and Colchester know they will be in for a huge battle on Saturday.

The Blacks, however, will not lack confidence after Saturday’s home win against Westcombe Park, with the six tries shared out amongst five players, along with a penalty try.

“To compete in this league, you need a good squad with depth,” said head coach Mike Haywood. “If guys are coming in, they’ve got to fill that shirt and there can’t be a difference between them and the next person.

“We know that if we put our game on the pitch it works against most teams. London Welsh have recruited well, and we know it’s going to be a huge challenge for us. We’re super-excited to go there.”

Supporters may like to consider travelling to the match by train, with Old Deer Park just a 10-minute walk from Richmond station.

Meanwhile, there’s plenty of action at Raven Park this weekend with pre-season friendlies for both The Ravens and the As against Harlow (2pm) and Mistley (3.45pm) respectively.

The weekend action starts on Friday night with The Roman Ruins in action against Suffolk Veterans (7.45pm) under the Raven Park lights.