Nick Wright previews this weekend's clash between York City Knights and Hull FC
Alex Reid looks at whether the once ever-present appearance of English clubs in the later stages of the Champions League is set to become a thing of the past
Craig Dobson looks at QPR's decision to sack Neil Warnock and replace him with Mark Hughes
James Tompkinson reviews an excellent pre-season victory for the York City Knights against Yorkshire rivals Leeds Rhinos
There are a total of 118 events supplying 246 Roses points during this year's Roses extravaganza, with 41 sports being played by men, women and a mixture of the two (men and women playing on the same team, not hermaphrodite sport).
20 points have already been played out in Sunday's rowing, with Lancaster taking 16 of those points to give themselves a lead of 12 points. Clearly it is always nice to take an early lead, but with so much left to play for, little should be read into this. AU President Jo Carter shares this view: "I think we have strong teams and I am quietly confident."
An away Roses has not been won by either University since 2002 when York beat Lancaster in their own backyard. "Without doubt" was the reply of Carter when asked if winning away again would be her greatest achievement as AU President.
According to the BUSA rankings, early last term York and Lancaster were dead level in 33rd, but now a fantastic term in both the league and knockout has seen York propelled up to 28th, doubling 42nd place Lancaster's BUSA points total.
This should give York an edge in terms of quality, but in nearly every sport in the world, home advantage should even this up slightly. Carter agrees that "it helps" but she is adamant that York's travelling support "could be just as strong - we've got over 300 people heading across to Lancaster this weekend - I'd really like to see everyone going round and watching as much sport as possible."
As a rallying call Carter ended by wishing everyone "the very best of luck - I am so proud of the professionalism that teams have shown this year, and just enjoy being part of such a unique event."
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