ALFIE HILL will take his York Acorn ARLC troops over to Ince Rosebridge on Saturday claiming the Wiganers are still favourites for promotion in National Conference division one.

Acorn ended a four-game losing streak early in the season by beating Ince at Thanet Road and have since lifted themselves to the fringes of the promotion picture.

They have won their last two away games and hammered Milford Marlins 40-8 at home last week, but Hill has warned his side that Ince are likely to provide a different proposition this weekend.

"They've got a bit of form just lately and they've moved up to fifth," said Hill, whose side are one place and one point below.

"They were probably one of the favourites for promotion at the start of the season and that's still the case. They suffered a bit with injuries at the start but now they've got a good squad together."

Ince have had a break over Christmas as they did not have a game last weekend, and Hill was hoping that would play in Acorn's favour.

"They will either be rusty or fresh," he said. "We were a little bit rusty ourselves last week but we scored some good tries and to get 40 points was a good feat."

Acorn will also be boosted by the return of hooker Darren Callaghan, who was away last week, while Hill was hoping prop Lee McTigue would also be available rather than miss out through work commitments.

Heworth ARLC are eager to start 2007 by getting back to the business of winning games.

The Villagers' last division two match was a comprehensive defeat to runaway leaders Waterhead on December 9, with one postponement and a fortnight off over Christmas meaning it will be four weeks since their last run-out.

Their last win was back in November and this sequence, coupled with the fact it is a tight division, has seen them fall from the promotion zone to the bottom half of the table.

They face a difficult assignment against a Saddleworth side which has hit form, but the break might play into their hands.

Said Heworth spokesman Ken Sykes: "Saddleworth have had a good run recently. They had a bad start but they've been quite impressive and have got a bit of momentum going, so it will be a tough one.

"But it would be nice to start the new year on a positive note and we're capable of it; it just depends how well we play."

He added: "There are likely to be a few cobwebs. The break might have done the players good but it depends how much Christmas pudding they've had.

"It's been a longish break and that might be a factor, but it will be a factor for the other teams as well."

Long-term absentees Nikki Wilson (back) and Simon Harrison (knee) are both thought to be some way off a return.