SOUTHEND Saxons director of rugby Josh Ward wants his side to enjoy their ‘once in a lifetime’ clash at Twickenham tomorrow.
Southend, who have already been crowned Regional Two Anglia Champions, take on Northampton Old Scouts at the home of English rugby.
And Ward is already counting down the hours until the Papa Johns National Trophy final kicks off.
“It’s huge,” said Ward.
“It’s once in a lifetime stuff and the boys have got to enjoy it.
“They need to embrace it and what we don’t want them to do is let the occasion affect how we play.
“That’s going to be the biggest challenge on the day.”
But Ward is working on ways to stop that happening.
“As quick as we can get boys into the arena the better it will be because then you start to process where you’re at,” said Ward.
“We’ve spoken about how the pitch dimensions are no different, it just looks it.
“We’ve had an incredible season though, we’ve won three trophies as a squad and we’ve already made history.
“But we’ve got an opportunity to get a fourth trophy and doing it at Twickenham would be fairytale stuff.”
Southend set up this weekend’s clash after beating Royal Wootton Bassett 33-22 in Saturday’s semi-final.
And Ward is now looking for one more big push.
“From a staffing point of view we had the elation of getting to Twickenham on Saturday but then you’ve also got the sympathetic side where you’ve got a number of boys who want to be playing and unfortunately aren’t,” said Ward.
“It’s brutal and that’s part of it but we’re getting around those boys within the group.
“They understand it but it doesn’t soften the blow.
“However, the overriding feeling is excitement and we’ve had a really good session tonight.
“There’s a lot of energy and we will throw everything at it.”
Northampton Old Scouts finished fourth in Regional 2 Midlands East this season with 16 wins in 22 games.
But Ward is opting to focus more on his own side’s performance.
“We’ve tried to prepare the best we can and we have seen some clips of them which have been useful,” said Ward.
“But ultimately at this point of the season we’re 24 games unbeaten and we’ve got a lot of belief in how we go about things.
“We’re polished and fine-tuned in what we do and how we play. “There’s a lot of confidence and belief in it now.”
And that has led to one of the biggest days in the club’s history.
“Nothing comes close to what this is,” said Ward.
“To take my team and this staff to Twickenham is a reward for all the hard work.
“I never lose sight of where we started and where we’ve got.
“It’s going to be a very special day for everyone connected with the club.”
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