Sheffield Eagles v Halifax: Yorkshire derby is timely test for both
They go up against one of the Championship’s four full-time clubs for the first time this season.
Halifax eased to a 52-6 win over Whitehaven in their opener last weekend and Marshall is not expecting to make any alterations to his squad.
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Hide Ad“I can’t see there being many changes, if any at all, to the side that played at the weekend,” he said, ahead of a game with opponents who also won convincingly, 42-12 at Workington.
“Luke Ambler’s been ill this week, but I’d imagine he will be okay.
“We’ve got other guys pushing for places, but I don’t think we were ever under enough pressure against Whitehaven to be able to make any real judgements about the 17 players who played last weekend.
“That will change against Sheffield; they’re a full-time side and they’re all about high percentages and doing the little things well.”
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Hide AdMarshall added: “They’ve probably been able to do 50 per cent as much work as us again so they’ll be a little bit fitter and a little bit stronger.
“They get good go-forward from Scott Wheeldon and Mark Mexico and they’ve got one of the best players in the comp in QLT (Quentin Laulu-Togagae). He’s hurt us a few times in the past and we need to defend him better than we did at times last season.”
Sheffield, like Halifax, made the top-four last season and produced some encouraging displays in the Qualifiers despite being just part-time. Mark Aston has taken his squad fully professional for 2016, though, and will be expecting results.