Buoyant Malta face favourites Poland

A tough assignment awaits the national team this afternoon when Damian Neill's Malta face Nations Cup Division 2B favourites Poland in Siedlce (kick-off 3 p.m.).

Spirits are high in the Maltese clan following Saturday's spirited 31-24 win over Andorra at the Hibs Ground but today, Neill is fully aware that his players will face much stronger opponents at the MKS Pogon Stadion.

The Poles are undoubtedly the strongest in the five-team group. At present, they are second in the standings with a maximum nine points, one behind Latvia who, however, played a game more.

Poland have won all their three matches so far, opening up with a comfortable 54-8 victory over Andorra, at home, before winning their next two away qualifiers against Croatia (12-11) and Latvia (33-9).

"When the list of fixtures was published I immediately realised that this was going to be our toughest test in the group," Neill told The Times earlier this week.

"Poland are one of the new rugby realities on the continent. They made giant strides these last few years and look much stronger now than the side that beat us 38-13 at Marsa in November 2004."

The victory over Andorra was Malta's first in the group. They are still bottom with five points, just one short of Croatia and Andorra who played a game more.

Neill's preparations were hit by the news that Jamie Caruana and Malcolm Attard withdrew from the squad. Caruana's absence, in particular, is of a major concern as he is a key figure in the side.

They have been replaced by Harry Collins (Hartpury College) and Nick Warren (Wootton Bassett).

There are also some worries about the physical condition of some other members in the squad who picked knocks against Andorra.

"Jamie's absence is a major blow for us. Against Andorra he was one of our best players... his strength and power is crucial for us to break down opponents," Neill said.

"But we've still got players who can make the difference on the day.

"We have to check on the condition of some players but things should be OK by match-day. Poland away is a daunting task but we won't give up without a fight."

Women's team in Bosnia

This weekend, the women's national team will also be in action when they take part in the European Sevens Championship in Zenica, Bosnia.

The team, led by Carmelo Longo and Audrey Vella, will play their opening group matches today when they face Finland, Serbia, Denmark and Bosnia. Tomorrow, they play Hungary.

Two years ago, the Maltese played in the European Championships in Prague and beat the Czech Republic 'B' side twice.

Last year, the girls travelled to France and improved their Euro ranking to 22 out of 26 nations.