By Matt Lawton
October 26 2007

Saturday afternoon sees Leigh make the lengthy trip to Northumberland for a vital Blue Square North encounter against basement rivals Blyth Spartans, with the squad of recently-appointed RMI manager Steve Bleasdale boosted by several new signings.

With front man Dan Owen and strike partner Kevin Rapley leaving the club recently, with Owen choosing to pursue a career outside of the game and Rapley joining Blue Square North rivals Barrow, Bleasdale will be fielding a new-look strike force that is likely to feature former England Under 18 international Richard Chetcuti and one of Sean O'Neil or ex-Liverpool man Mark Smyth, who have both joined in the club in a busy week of transfer dealings.

Also in the squad is young midfielder Sean Ferguson, who has joined RMI from League Two side Tranmere Rovers, as Bleasdale starts to build a side of his own to achieve Blue Square North safety after taking the reigns from previous manager Stuart Humphreys.

Last season's visit to Croft Park saw RMI suffer a 1-0 defeat in monsoon-like conditions, while Leigh won the return fixture 3-1 on a chilly Hilton Park evening last March.