SATURDAY'S Tetley Bitter Cup test at Tynedale is a potential banana skin of a tie and it is important the players guard against complacency in Northumberland.

We travel to the North East with the carrot of a fifth round match at Saracens if we are successful.

However, it is vital our minds are at Tynedale Park rather than Vicarage Road.

Too often for my liking this season we have shown frustrating levels of inconsistency which I hope does not surface on Saturday. It is a classic situation for a cup game - David v Goliath and we have to make sure we don't give them a sniff. It is a potential ambush up there because it will not matter to them that they play leagues below us. They will want to make history in what will be a massive game for them. If we approach the tie in the right frame of mind then there shouldn't be a problem. If not, we could slip up.

I have made a number of changes to the victorious team at Waterloo. In comes Nick Broughton for his first start of the season while Sateki Tuipulotu returns in place of Nick Baxter. Tony Windo and Richard Denhardt come in while Dave Fryday moves back to number eight. I have shuffled the pack a little because I want to give some players game time before the Saracens match. The players coming in will be part of the 22 and need to be sharp because it will obviously be a massive test. We suffered a blow this week with the news that Earl Va'a is definitely ruled out of the Saracens match if we come through Tynedale. Earl will have to rest his hand injury for at least another two weeks. It is disappointing for him and for me because I thought he would have made an impact in the match against the Premiership top dogs. He is a very talented fly half, not only in an attacking sense but also defensively. It is a massive blow because, on his day, he held the side together.

I was, on the whole, quite pleased with our 32-19 win at Waterloo on Saturday which keeps us six points clear of second-placed Leeds in National Division One. For 60 minutes, I think we played some good stuff and in particular the new-boys Richard Jarman and Rudi Keil were impressive. Jarman scored two tries and looked alert throughout and considering Keil had only been in Britain for five days, he did well on his debut. However, I thought our performance in the final 20 minutes of the game was virtually non existent.

I was absolutely gutted at conceding three tries, we took our foot off the pedal and let them back into the game. You cannot afford to do that. What I want to see is a solid 80 minutes when, after we go ahead, we completely kill teams off. That is the level of inconsistency which concerns me. You have to have the killer instinct and want to pile the agony on for the opposition when you are in a position of strength. I talk about being mentally tough and that is part and parcel of it. What I want to see from the players is a mental toughness where they just want to go out on the park and put the opposition out of sight.

I take my hat off to the Waterloo players because they played their hearts out and I think they will do OK this season. They have already beaten Exeter and London Welsh and many teams will struggle at Blundellsands because they are a well-drilled side.

Finally, I would like to thank the travelling support who braved the awful conditions at Waterloo. It was a dreadful day with the rain lashing down and a strong winds to contend with.

Once again though, you did us proud and although it is a long trek, I hope to see you at Tynedale.