Well, 54-0 is certainly an embarrassment!

We took to the field last Friday confident of getting the win, but we caught Saints red hot and they simply blew us away.

We have several ready-made excuses with injuries and off-field distractions but the lads won’t be using any of them.

There is no excuse at all for a scoreline like that, and I know that we will do everything we can to make sure that doesn’t happen again.

Last Friday’s game took another victim with Ian Sibbit likely to miss the rest of the season with a badly-broken arm.

I’m absolutely gutted for ‘Sibbeesh’ because after rehabbing our shoulders together, I know how hard he has worked to get himself back on the pitch.

But Sib is a tough cookie and I know he’ll be back bigger and better than ever.

Speaking of his toughness, when the physio ran on to ask if he was okay he said he sent him away telling him he was fine!

It wasn’t until he saw the huge hole in Sib’s forearm where the bone had snapped in half that he politely told big Sib that, actually, he needed hospital treatment pretty quickly!

I’m not sure what everyone’s thoughts are on this week’s ‘Exiles’ game but I’m looking forward to it.

As a proud Yorkshireman I must admit I’d prefer to see an ‘Origin’ style Yorkshire versus Lancashire series but it is a good concept and it will be great to see the England team put in a solid performance.

The latest injury update on myself is an encouraging one. I should be starting light fieldwork in the next couple of weeks and hopefully back out on the pitch in the very near future.

While I’m talking about myself, I’m afraid it’s been me who’s had some flak from the lads this week.

As I said before, I’m a proud Yorkshireman with some strong Polish roots; I’m also a very proud ‘Polak’!

Unfortunately, Poland are letting me down big style in the Euros and it looks like the boys won’t let me forget it any time soon!

I’m going to finish with a big good luck message to all the England boys this weekend, and hopefully the England Academy team, proudly captained by our very own gypsy bare knuckle boxing champ – John Bateman – get the result they want tonight.

Good luck lads. COYB!