Match Preview - Halifax Panthers (H)

23/07/2021

Sheffield Eagles take on Halifax Panthers at Wakefield Trinity’s Mobile Rocket Stadium this Sunday in a 12:30pm kickoff.

Both sides head into this round of Championship action following victories, as Sheffield beat Swinton and Halifax got the better of Whitehaven. 

The Eagles will be aiming to make amends against their West Yorkshire counterparts, after Halifax dominated the first fixture between the teams earlier on this season. 

Last Time Out

Sheffield ran out 22-30 winners away at the Championship’s current basement club Swinton Lions. 

A hat-trick for Ryan Millar and an Oliver Davies brace was enough to seal the spoils for the visitors. 

The Eagles led 10-18 at the interval, courtesy of the Davies double and Millar’s first of the afternoon. Rhodri Lloyd and Owen Buckley got on the scoresheet for the Lions.

After the restart, Millar completed his hat-trick with successive scores as Sheffield started to pull away from their opponents. 

However this didn’t deter Swinton, who scored the final two tries of the game courtesy of Ben Heyes and Jack Hansen. 

Halifax were made to work for their 14-4 victory over Whitehaven at The Shay. 

Two penalties from Lachlan Walmsley gave the Cumbrians a 0-4 lead before Curtis Davies’ converted try on the stroke of half-time put the hosts ahead. 

With the final quarter approaching, Liam Harris added a penalty goal before ex-Eagle Matt Garside notched a crucial four-pointer which Harris then converted. 

Key Battle

It’s a big game for the Eagles forwards against a Halifax side that did a number on them at The Shay.

Admittedly Brad Knowles went off injured in the first half which certainly didn’t help matters, as the Panthers took control of the game. 

With Knowles and Joel Farrell, two vital players in the pack, now fit and firing it will be interesting to see how the game unfolds in Wakefield. 

Scott Wheeldon, Evan Hodgson and Greg Burns were the three forwards on the interchange bench, joined by winger Travis Corion. 

Facing a ferocious Fax pack, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the likes of Paddy Burns or Bobby Tyson-Wilson make their way on to the bench to add a bit more depth. 

Will Calcott and Dan Murray were the Panthers’ starting prop forwards against Whitehaven, while Ben Kavanagh, Matt Garside and Adam Tangata lining up in the back-row. 

On the bench, they had Jacob Fairbank, Kevin Larroyer and Elliot Morris. 

As well as providing strong carries the Halifax forwards aren’t afraid to throw the ball around at times, to the dismay of the Prop Forward Association chairman on Twitter. 

With two expansive sides going head-to-head, Sunday’s game could prove to be a cracker. 

After teeing it up nicely, here’s what you need to do so you can come and watch..

Ticket and Match Day Info

Tickets are available from https://eagles.mysportstickets.co.uk/

Match Day information can be found here: https://www.sheffieldeagles.com/Eagles-News/article/match-day-information-halifax-at-wakefield/

The game will not be streamed on Our League.

We hope to see you at Wakefield on Sunday!

By Dan Fowler, photo by Alex Coleman