Sheffield Eagles: Options aplenty for Aston as he looks to maintain impressive run

The Eagles host Richard Marshall’s side at the OLP with Aston not short on options as he looks to maintain their impressive recent form.

Back-to-back victories over Easter have kept Aston’s side within touching distance of the Championship pace-setters, and after rotating his ranks for both victories over Toulouse and Rochdale, the Eagles chief knows he has a tough call to make in a number of areas.

He explained to The Star: “Sonny Esslemont and Blake Broadbent backed up against Rochdale after playing against Toulouse with two strong performances. The kids have looked after themselves. Shaun Pick was very good against Toulouse, Rory Dixon the same. They were rested on Monday, so they'll be keen to put their hands up.

“My job is to pick the right team, to get the right personnel on the field for that particular game. I am delighted that we have the likes of the Esslemont, Broadbent, Dixon etc, that they have shown that they are capable of playing at this level. It gives me more headaches, which is a nice position to be in at this time.”

Halifax suffered back-to-back defeats over Easter, which included a heavy loss to Toulouse in France on Easter Monday. They sit eighth in the Championship standings, six points behind the Eagles.

Aston though is wary of a backlash from Fax, and is fully aware of the qualities of a familiar face, with the Eagles likely to come against former star Quentin Laulu-Togagae.

The Eagles chief aims to build on the last two games, stating his side must again show the correct mentality which has got them through testing periods in both recent victories.

Aston added: “I talked about the mentality at Rochdale. We weren't great to start with in that game, I thought we were a little sloppy. But we turned that around, and clicked into another gear.

“Halifax beat London, a Super League side, just a couple of weeks ago in the Challenge Cup, so they are a real threat. We know all about QLT, we have seen his capabilities over the years. He is one of several threats. He will cause us problems. It is about us though, when it comes to that third game, it is about mentality.”