SLEMEN: WE'RE READY

By MARK BENGOECHEA
SKIPPER David Slemen insists Esher have the mental toughness to triumph in Saturday’s huge top-of-the-table derby at London Scottish.
The local rivals are neck and neck at the summit of National One on 61 points and Slemen knows victory would be a giant step towards the Championship.
Esher, who beat the Exiles 23-17 in September, have a game in hand but have not played for five weeks because of the big chill that has swept Britain.
But fly-half Slemen hopes the game will get the go-ahead and insists his side are champing at the bit to inflict a potentially fatal blow to the Exiles’ own title hopes at the Athletic Ground.
He said:”It goes without saying it’s the biggest game of the season but it’s exciting and we are all looking forward to it.
“But we believe the pressure is all on them because if they lose, they go four points behind us and we still have a game in hand.
“You can’t say the whole season depends on one game in January but we know if we do win, it will be a massive step towards the title.
“It’s a bit like a 10-pointer or a cup final. If we win it will be very difficult for them to come back from so there’s obviously a lot riding on it.
“We won’t have played for five weeks, whereas they got a good win against Cambridge a couple of weeks ago.
“But our fitness coach Simon Elkinson has made sure we have kept our fitness levels up and we have been sharp in training.
“I also believe we have a squad who have shown how well they react to pressure and that could be vital on Saturday.
“Last season we had a terrible start but reacted well to that pressure by winning nine out of 10 games at one stage, even though we were relegated.
“The players showed they have what it takes to make the right decisions under pressure and I’m confident we have the players who can win on Saturday.”
Slemen admits discipline will be the key to victory at the Athletic Ground as Esher aim to improve on their display in the win over the Exiles four months ago.
He added: “We didn’t play particularly well that day and I was disappointed with our performance even though we won.
“But we are confident we have improved since then even though we know it’s going to be a very tough game.
“We have got to make sure we are tight in defence and keep our discipline and not give away penalties.
“But, as with most games, it will be up front where the game is won. If the pack can give us a good platform we are hard to beat.
“We know our match fitness levels will be down a bit but that will make sure we are fully focused and there will be no complacency.”